Applications of Geothermal Heat Exchange in Civil Engineering Infrastructure

Abstract

This paper focuses on design issues and key performance metrics for different applications of nearsurface geothermal heat exchangers in civil engineering infrastructure, including energy foundations, landfills, and thermally active embankments. Incorporation of heat exchangers into civil engineering infrastructure has the positive aspects of decreasing the installation cost of geothermal heat exchangers, permitting access to novel heat sources, and potentially improving the primary function of the infrastructure. However, other issues must be considered in design to ensure that these systems are feasible from the perspectives of both heat exchange and serviceability.