Geothermal Heat Pumps and Heat Exchangers

Dear Colleagues,

In total, 40% of global CO₂ emissions are from the building sector, and 60% of the total consumed energy in buildings is attributed to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Geothermal heat pumps (GHP) take advantage of the relatively constant temperature of the Earth to become highly efficient by exchanging heat with the Earth through a ground heat exchanger, allowing 20–70% of energy consumption reduction compared to conventional HAVC systems.

Nowadays, GHPs are considered as the spearhead of geothermal energy worldwide. The growth rate of the global GHP installed capacity was over 8% in the last decade, and it accounts for nearly 60% of geothermal direct use. Such an impressive development pace could not have been achieved without technology advances through different research in system designing, component modelling, controlling strategy, and optimization of thermal efficiency. The research and application of GHP systems is a multidisciplinary practice, involving complex thermal–hydrodynamic–mechanical–chemical coupled processes and governing mechanisms. The continuous development and application of GHP systems require innovative thinking and tremendous communication among different areas.

This Special Issue aims to gather original experimental, theoretical, and numerical research articles to present and disseminate the most recent advances related to the theory, experimentation, design, modelling, application, construction, and  monitoring of geothermal heat pumps and ground heat exchangers. Topics of interest for publication include, but are not limited to:

• Effective and affordable site investigation technologies used in complex hydrogeological environments;
• High-efficiency drilling technologies;
• Advanced backfilling materials;
• Optimization of working fluid;
• Coupled thermal–mechanical–fluid behaviours of heat exchangers and the ground;
• Dynamic monitoring, modelling, and prediction of ground temperature, hydrological, and mechanical fields;
• Integrating heat pumps and ground thermal/cold storage in energy districts;
• Application of geothermal heat pumps beyond the building sector;
• Environmental impacts and evaluation of geothermal heat pump systems;
• Smart, multi-source systems based on geothermal heat pumps.

Prof. Dr. Peng Pei
Guest Editor

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