Abstract
The new construction of a large office building in Hamburg, which is the subject of this investigation, has been closely monitored over a period of about 5 years. In addition to evaluating and optimising the energy demands and user comfort, the focus was on the management of the energy from an exceptionally large geothermal field which is used for heating and cooling the building. The possibilities for sustainable, energy efficient use of the geothermal field were investigated. The basis for the evaluations is a fibre optic Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) system, by means of which temperature profiles in the ground as well as in the concrete of the energy piles are recorded on an ongoing basis. With regard to the impact of geothermal energy use on the environment, the surrounding soil may be considered as undisturbed to date, based on the corresponding ground temperature measurements. The ground temperature measurements within the geothermal field show that by carrying out manual operating adjustments, ultimately the original soil temperature level could be achieved once again, after the three operating years under examination. A long-term, sustainable and therefore energy efficient use of the geothermal field is thus fundamentally possible in the present case.
Highlights
In terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the focus is inter alia on the building sector
If the temperatures occurring at the beginning of the measurements are compared with those at the end (c.f. 01.01.2015 and 01.01.2018), almost the same temperature levels can be identified in the lower-lying layers. This means that over the three years of operation, despite temporarily increased or decreased temperature levels occurring within the individual years due to the direct influence of heat input and withdrawal, an overall sustainable management of the energy pile field has ensured that the original temperatures of just over 11 °C have been achieved again
The base load coverage for heating and hot water is provided by shallow geothermal energy, in combination with two electrical brine/water heat pumps, and local heating is used for peak load coverage or to reach the required temperature levels
Summary
In terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the focus is inter alia on the building sector. Witte and Van Gelder [14] investigated a geothermal probe field for heating and cooling an office building and warehouse using geothermal heat pumps Their focus was, among other aspects, on investigating the possibility of targeted adjustment of the unbalanced annual energy input/output of the ground, based on the calculated higher cooling requirements of the building compared to its heating requirements. Among other aspects, on investigating the possibility of targeted adjustment of the unbalanced annual energy input/output of the ground, based on the calculated higher cooling requirements of the building compared to its heating requirements For this purpose, a heat exchanger for re-cooling was incorporated into the building’s energy concept, which should provide relief for the geothermal probe field in the early spring months. A model predictive control of the building operation, taking into account the management of the geothermal field in terms of adjusting temperature levels in the soil, would be optimal regarding the sustainability and energy efficiency of the building’s energy supply, and should be further investigated in future
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