Abstract
This work investigates a novel approach to enhance the performance of Ground Heat Exchangers (GHE) thereby improving the storage and transfer of thermal energy of a Ground Source Heat Pump (GSHP). In particular, relatively inexpensive irrigation pipes are utilized to significantly improve the efficiency of a GHE by strategically tuning the soil’s thermal conductivity field via a moisture pattern profile that connects the GSHP pipe to the beneficial heat paths. In this study, computational fluid dynamic simulations are utilized to assess the effectiveness of this design. Results are generated for two geometric configurations of the buried irrigation pipes operating in winter and summer seasons in the Northeast United States. These simulations are also conducted for various soil permeability. The findings illustrate that the permeability of the soil, the location of the irrigation pipes, and the moisture content of the soil greatly influence the moisture pattern and thus the efficiency of the GSHP system.
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