Submit to Sustainability Review for Sustainability Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

Frontier Research of Energy Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Published Papers

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Energy Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 January 2023) | Viewed by 8969

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Miguel Ángel Marazuela Calvo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Centre for Microbiology and Environmental Systems Science, Department of Environmental Geosciences, University of Vienna, 1090 Vienna, Austria
Interests: numerical modelling; geothermal energy; coastal aquifers; lithium; brines; salt flats; density-driven flow; arid environments; bank filtration; groundwater quality; enmerging contaminants; groundwater management; urban hydrogeology.

Dr. Alejandro García Gil

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Geological Survey of Spain (IGME), C/ Ríos Rosas 23, 28003 Madrid, Spain
Interests: geothermal energy; numerical modelling; urban hydrogeology; groundwater quality; reactive transport; groundwater microbiology; emerging organic contaminants.

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The increasing demand for energy and the depletion of fossil fuels have fueled explorations in new frontiers of renewable energy technology with low greenhouse emissions. In this context, shallow geothermal energy (SGE) has been proved as one of the most economical, environment-friendly and renewable energy sources for heating and cooling buildings in the world. This technology relies on the fact that the Earth has a relatively constant temperature at 15 m depth, warmer than the air in winter and cooler in summer, thus configuring a shallow geothermal reservoir. A geothermal heat pump device is commonly used to transfer heat with the shallow geothermal reservoir for heating buildings in winter and cooling in summer. These systems can be classified into two main groups depending on the geothermal heat exchangers used to exploit the reservoir: closed-loop systems (ground-coupled heat pumps, GCHPs) and open-loop systems (ground water heat pumps, GWHPs), depending on whether the heat carrier fluid used for heat exchange with the shallow geothermal reservoir is not exchanged between the geothermal heat exchanger and the shallow geothermal reservoir or whether it is exchanged using groundwater as the heat carrier fluid.

This Special Issue will focus on GWHP systems and the groundwater impacts of GCHP systems. We are especially interested in modelling and analytical studies addressing technological challenges in the development, performance and efficiency of SGE systems, plume interactions between SGE systems, heterogeneity constraints in thermal plume development and system performance and, in general, any thermo-hydro-mechanical-chemical impacts of SGE systems on aquifers.

In addition, the use of innovative tools and techniques, such as optical fiber, that enhance data acquisition and parameter estimation in aquifers and thus improve monitoring and decision-making in urban aquifers will be especially valued. Case studies that serve as a reference to quantify the thermal and environmental impacts of geothermal systems in urban environments and provide better tools for water resources management are also within the scope of this Special Issue.

Finally, any other issue related to geothermal energy that represents an outstanding advancement for energy engineering and the technological development of society or which contributes to explaining the role of geothermal energy in the genesis of some strategic mineral deposits will be also considered for publication within this Special Issue.

Dr. Miguel Ángel Marazuela Calvo
Dr. Alejandro García Gil
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

geothermal energy
groundwater heat pump systems (GHPSs)
shallow geothermal energy (SGE)
optical fiber
numerical modelling
groundwater flow
water resources management
aquifer
urban aquifer

Published Papers (4 papers)

Download All Papers

Editorial

Jump to: Research

3 pages, 217 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Frontier Research of Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems

by Miguel Angel Marazuela and Alejandro García-Gil

Sustainability 2022, 14(21), 13745; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su142113745 - 24 Oct 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1304

Abstract

Geothermal energy is a near-inexhaustible and multi-purpose resource capable of satisfying global energy demand while lowering the reliance on fossil fuels for primary energy [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontier Research of Energy Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems)

Research

Jump to: Editorial

14 pages, 5825 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Geothermal Imaging of the Saudi Cross-Border City of NEOM Deduced from Magnetic Data

by Essam Aboud, Faisal Alqahtani, Murad Abdulfarraj, Ema Abraham, Nabil El-Masry and Helmy Osman

Sustainability 2023, 15(5), 4549; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su15054549 - 03 Mar 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3246

Abstract

The Saudi Arabia government announced the $500 billion mega project “NEOM City”, to build a cross-border mega city to connect Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordon for attracting foreign investments to the region. NEOM city is situated on the eastern region of the Gulf of Aqaba with its western side in the Sinai Peninsula. The selected site for NEOM city is geographically remarkable; nevertheless, this site needs a detailed geological and geophysical investigation. Sinai Peninsula is a microplate between the Arabian and African plates. Its southern tip is located at a triple junction comprising the Gulf of Aqaba–Dead Sea Transform fault, the Gulf of Suez, and the Red Sea, leading to relatively higher seismic activities in the region. The current study aims to understand the thermal structure of the vicinity of NEOM city to address the potential geohazards and indicate geological attractions within and around the planned city. We use the magnetic data from which geothermal images can be obtained. The preliminary results indicate that there is geologic similarity between the southern part of Sinai Peninsula and the northern part of the Arabian shield. This is because the Gulf of Aqaba separates what was once a continues Neoproterozoic crust. In addition, the magnetic data showed the presence of prominent lineaments on either side of the Gulf of Aqaba. The notable lineaments might represent faults that could still be active. Hence, selecting a site of NEOM city to be east of the Gulf of Aqaba needs to be guided by the careful understanding of the potential hazards. In addition, shallow Curie depths near the Gulf of Aqaba are recognized as a source for renewable geothermal energy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontier Research of Energy Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

19 pages, 6056 KiB

Open AccessArticle

CO₂ Storage and Geothermal Extraction Technology for Deep Coal Mine

by Fangtian Wang and Jinghong Yan

Sustainability 2022, 14(19), 12322; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su141912322 - 28 Sep 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1356

Abstract

This paper aims at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, which contributes to carbon neutrality, and, at the same time, preventing mine heat disasters and extracting highly mineralized (HM) mine water, so as to realize the synergy between CO₂ storage (CS) and geothermal extraction and utilization (GEU) in a high temperature (HT) goaf. With this purpose, an innovative CS-GEU technology for HT and HM water in deep mine is proposed, based on the mechanism of water-rock-CO₂ effect (WRCE) and the principle of GEU in the mine. This technology uses GEU to offset the costs of CO₂ storage and refrigeration in HT mine. A general scheme for a synergistic system of CS and GEU in the goaf is designed. The feasibility of CS-GEU technology in the deep goaf is demonstrated from the views of CS and GEU in the goaf and the principles of a synergistic system. It is clarified that the CO₂ migration-storage evolution and the multi-field coupling principle in the goaf are the key scientific issues in realizing the synergic operation of CS and GEU. It proposes the key techniques involved in this process: CO₂ capture and CO₂ transportation, layout and support of drill holes and high-pressure (HP) pipelines, and HP sealing in the goaf. The research results provide new ideas for CS and GEU of HT and HM mine water in deep mine. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontier Research of Energy Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

21 pages, 5089 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Leak Geometry on Water Characteristics Inside Pipes

by Sajid Ali, Muhammad A. Hawwa and Uthman Baroudi

Sustainability 2022, 14(9), 5224; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su14095224 - 26 Apr 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2387

Abstract

Water leaks from pipelines have large economic and ecological impacts. Minimizing water loss from supply pipelines has favorable effects on the environment as well as on energy consumption. This paper aims to understand the effect of the geometry of a leaking crack in a pipe wall by examining fluid flow characteristics, namely pressure and velocity distributions, inside the pipe. Practical observations show that the cause of wall rupture influences the geometry of cracks formed in a pipe wall, impacting aspects such as excessive pressure, corrosion. Knowledge of fluid flow characteristics could help in detecting and identifying leak characteristics at an early stage and assist in improving the energy and resource efficiency of water supply services. An experimental setup is developed to detect water leakage in a pipe when the leak is at an early stage and is difficult to detect by visual inspection. A computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model is developed using the COMSOL software. A comprehensive analysis of the effect of leak geometry on pressure and velocity distributions along the pipe is carried out while considering factors such as different pipe sizes, leak geometries, and steady-state flow conditions. It is observed that both velocity and pressure magnitudes rapidly fluctuate in the vicinity of leaks. Leaking cracks with slot, circle, and square shapes are found to generate distinguishing pressure and velocity distributions along the pipe. Thus, the geometry of the leaking crack and potentially its root cause(s) could be predicted by measuring velocity and pressure distributions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Frontier Research of Energy Engineering: Geothermal Energy Utilization and Groundwater Heat Pump Systems)

► Show Figures