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Response of unsaturated soils to heating of geothermal energy pile

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  • Sani, Abubakar Kawuwa
  • Singh, Rao Martand

Abstract

Geothermal energy piles (GEPs) are an environmentally friendly heat exchange technology that dualizes the role of structural foundation pile for load support and in meeting the building heating/cooling need. Energy loops made from high-density polyethylene which allow heat carrier fluid circulation, are fitted into the pile foundation elements to extract or inject and store heat energy in the soil surrounding the pile. This paper reports the results of a numerical study investigating the response of an energy pile embedded in unsaturated soils (sand, silt and clay) to natural thermal recovery, after heat injection process. It was found that the increase in soil saturation, duration of heating operation i.e. intermittent (8 or 16 h heating) or continuous mode, magnitude of the heat injection rates influences the temperature changes in the soil surrounding the pile, consequently impacting on the system performance. Similarly, it was observed that temperature at all location approached initial state in a duration equal to about twice that of the heating time. In addition, it was found that imposing excessive heat flux on the pile results in the drying up of the surrounding soil leading to lower thermal conductivity thus decreasing the overall GEP system performance.

Suggested Citation

  • Sani, Abubakar Kawuwa & Singh, Rao Martand, 2020. "Response of unsaturated soils to heating of geothermal energy pile," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 147(P2), pages 2618-2632.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:renene:v:147:y:2020:i:p2:p:2618-2632
    DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2018.11.032
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Cecinato, Francesco & Loveridge, Fleur A., 2015. "Influences on the thermal efficiency of energy piles," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 1021-1033.
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    1. Cunha, R.P. & Bourne-Webb, P.J., 2022. "A critical review on the current knowledge of geothermal energy piles to sustainably climatize buildings," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 158(C).
    2. Cherati, Davood Yazdani & Ghasemi-Fare, Omid, 2021. "Practical approaches for implementation of energy piles in Iran based on the lessons learned from the developed countries experiences," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    3. Abubakar Kawuwa Sani & Rao Martand Singh, 2021. "Long-Term Thermal Performance of Group of Energy Piles in Unsaturated Soils under Cyclic Thermal Loading," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(14), pages 1-28, July.
    4. Ma, Qijie & Wang, Peijun & Fan, Jianhua & Klar, Assaf, 2022. "Underground solar energy storage via energy piles: An experimental study," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 306(PB).
    5. Zhi Chen & Bo Wang & Lifei Zheng & Henglin Xiao & Jingquan Wang, 2021. "Research on Heat Exchange Law and Structural Design Optimization of Deep Buried Pipe Energy Piles," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-19, October.
    6. Bao, Xiaohua & Qi, Xuedong & Cui, Hongzhi & Tang, Waiching & Chen, Xiangsheng, 2022. "Experimental study on thermal response of a PCM energy pile in unsaturated clay," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 185(C), pages 790-803.
    7. Cao, Ziming & Zhang, Guozhu & Liu, Yiping & Zhao, Xu & Li, Chenglin, 2022. "Influence of backfilling phase change material on thermal performance of precast high-strength concrete energy pile," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 184(C), pages 374-390.

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