Geothermal heat pump systems contribute to points necessary for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification. These distinctions qualify the GHP system for most state energy requirements and/or tax incentives.
Geothermal heat pump systems in most states have been declared not only energy efficient, but also renewable energy. Energy savings realized against the most efficient water-cooled chiller systems can be 10%, whereas savings against typical air-to-air technologies can be as high as 50%. Typical savings on the total energy use of the building can be from 10 to 50%, depending upon the demand placed on the space conditioning systems.
Department of Energy (Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)) has proclaimed that GHP systems are the most efficient technology available for space conditioning. These interchangeable names all refer to the use of geothermal heat pump (GHP) systems. The technology can be referred to as geoexchange systems, ground source heat pumps, ground coupled heat pumps, or earth coupled systems. Use of the earth’s resources as a medium for transferring heat is a technology that can be utilized for heating, cooling, and refrigeration. This entry explains some of the basic concepts and terms used in this industry. These systems are not complicated and can be among the simplest systems for the purposes to which they are applied. These systems should never be overlooked when thinking about designing any system for the purpose of conditioning space or the temperature of a material or process. Geothermal technologies are considered to be renewable energy as well as energy-efficient technologies. Vertical geothermal heat pump systems can usually be built for about the same cost as a 4-pipe chiller/boiler system. The larger the demand placed on an heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC/R) system, the faster the payback period for the upfront capital cost. Geothermal systems have been applied to projects from large buildings in the country to medium-size structures in Manhattan. Geothermal systems have been applied successfully to projects around the world, from inside the Arctic Circle to the desert regions. These systems can refrigerate down to below 0☏ and heat water for domestic use up to 120☏. Since then, this technology had been researched and implemented successfully in projects of all sizes-from small mobile homes to large schools and universities and to complete developments with multiple systems. Geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) first became well known in the energy crises of the 1970s in the United States they had been used in Europe for many years before that. The earth’s thermal mass has an almost-endless capacity to absorb and store heat.
Geothermal heat exchanger technology is the most efficient method of heating, cooling, or refrigerating any enclosure that can be conditioned.