411 results about "Geothermal heating" patented technology

A heat and cooling system having an indoor air coil subcircuit, an outdoor air coil subcircuit, a geothermal subcircuit, and a control system for selectively operating the system in air-to-air heating, air-to-air cooling, geothermal heating, air-to-air defrost (optionally) and geothermal defrost modes. The various subcircuits may be connected to one another in parallel. The heating and cooling system may include a control system that permits refrigerant to be selectively routed through any two of the heat exchangers to provide the various modes of operation. In one embodiment, the control system may generally include a circuit having a single reversing valve, a plurality of check valves, a plurality of solenoid valves and a plurality of expansion devices.

A direct expansion/direct exchange (“DX”) geothermal heating/cooling system having a plurality of pin restrictors positioned in housing units at ground accessible locations. The pin restrictors are preferably located near the compressor unit and on the field side of the distributor. Refrigerant is substantially equally distributed by a distributor to substantially equally sized line sets in the DX system with multiple wells. The distributors are place in either horizontal or vertical inclinations with the pin restrictors situated on the field side of the distributor in each individual liquid refrigerant transport line. A cut-off ball valve is located within the liquid refrigerant transport line on each side of the respective pin restrictor housing units. A filter/dryer is place within the same liquid refrigerant transport line segment as the pin restrictor(s) with a refrigerant flow shut-off valve being situated on each side of the liquid line segment containing the filter/dryer and the distributor.

A closed-loop, solid-state system generates electricity from geothermal heat from a well by flow of heat, without needing large quantities of water to conduct heat from the ground. The present invention contemplates uses for depleted oil or gas wells and newly drilled wells to generate electricity in an environmentally-friendly method. Geothermal heat is conducted from the Earth to a heat exchanging element to heat the contents of pipes. The pipes are insulated between the bottom of the well and the surface to minimize heat dissipation as the heated contents of the pipes travel to the surface.

A novel idea involving the coupling of CO₂ geological storage with methane and/or heat production (geothermal energy) from geopressured-geothermal aquifers is described herein. The production of energy from the extracted brine offsets the cost of capture, pressurization, and injection and the subsequent injection of brine containing carbon dioxide back into the aquifer. Calculations described in the present invention indicate that this offset would reduce the cost of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) to a point that CCS could survive in a competitive market environment without subsidies or a price on carbon.

A self-contained water-to-water heat transfer system is provided that mixes hot water produced by a heat exchange with cold output fluid expelled from the heat pump to make source fluid. More specifically, in order to reduce the fluid flow rate required within a heat pump and substantially prevent freezing of evaporator coils within the heat pump, source water fed into the heat pump is taken from a mixture of the output hot water that was generated in the heat pump and the cool water exiting the heat pump. The system alleviates the need to employ a ground loop outside of a structure that is required by traditional geothermal heating systems.

The invention discloses an indoor geothermal heating structure utilizing a capillary network and a phase-change thermal storage material, which belongs to the technical field of solar building heating. The structure includes a floor decoration layer, an upper phase change material, a capillary grid, a lower phase change material, a reflection film, an insulation layer and a floor base layer from top to bottom. The floor decoration layer is supported by dragon frames laid on the insulation layer, the dragon frames pass through the tube gaps of capillary grids, and the phase change material layers are arranged between adjacent dragon frames. The hot water from the low-temperature heat source exchanges heat with the upper and lower phase-change materials in the capillary, and supplies heat to the room through the floor decoration layer; at night, the phase-change material solidifies and releases heat to supply heat to the room through the floor decoration layer. The indoor geothermal heating structure of this capillary network and phase change heat storage material has the characteristics of large heat exchange area, uniform temperature, fast start-up, less space occupation, more flexible layout, and convenient installation. The indoor temperature is uniform, and the indoor thermal comfort is good. Wide application prospects and promotion value.

The invention discloses a hydrate reservoir developing well group structure and method using geothermal energy. The well group structure mainly comprises a horizontal injection well and a comprehensive well, wherein cold fluid is injected into the horizontal injection well, flows into a directional communication well section of the comprehensive well on the top after being heated by a hot dry rock reservoir, and flows upwards back to a hydrate reservoir, the heated fluid flows into the hydrate reservoir through a perforation section to provide energy for hydrate decomposition, and the mixed fluid of natural gas generated by decomposition and the injected fluid is extracted from a horizontal production well section of the comprehensive well on the top under the influence of gravity and pressure. According to the hydrate reservoir developing well group structure and method using the geothermal energy, heat of the hot dry rock reservoir is transmitted to the hydrate reservoir through heat transport fluid, at the same time, a plurality of horizontal well sections are chosen to improve the heat exchange efficiency, and deficiencies such as low heat utilization rate and high development cost of a traditional thermal excitation method are made up for. The hydrate reservoir developing well group structure using the geothermal energy has simple equipment and is convenient to operate, high in economic efficiency and capable of providing guidance for implementation of hydrate reservoir production increasing measures.

A geothermal heating and cooling system is thermally coupleable to a ground coil formed from a thermal superconductor material. The system includes a heat intensification circuit, a thermal superconductor heat exchange coil and a thermal switch coupling the intensifying heat exchanger to the superconductor heat exchanger, and a thermostat controller connected to the thermal switch and intensifying heat exchanger. The system employs a high thermal transfer superconductor to efficiently move heat to and from the earth source for the purpose of heating and cooling. The system operates in cooling and heating modes by controlling the thermal switches and activating the heat intensification circuit in response to the difference between a set point and a measured temperature. Heat can be transferred to and from the superconductor heat exchange coil through various air and liquid exchange subsystems including fans, direct and indirect liquid heat exchange.

A direct exchange geothermal heating/cooling system has a self-adjusting expansion valve and a bypass flow path to improve efficiency when the system operates in a heating mode. The expansion valve may operate based solely on pressure from the vapor refrigerant transport line. The system may alternatively include an accumulator, a compressor, and an oil separator, wherein an oil return line returns oil from the oil separator to the accumulator. Additionally, a direct exchange geothermal heating/cooling system may include a hot-gas bypass valve for diverting heated vapor refrigerant to the liquid refrigerant line. Finally, a direct exchange geothermal heating/cooling system having a sub-surface heat exchanger extending to a depth of at least 300 feet may use a refrigerant particularly suited for such an application.

A system for installing sub-surface fluid transport tubing and pressure testing coupling seals in a vertically oriented geothermal heating/cooling system installation, and particularly in a direct exchange system installation, includes providing an elevated containment area, that has a confined space opening, supported by extensions/poles, within which opening an upper portion of the fluid transport tubing segment, to be installed within the borehole, can be positioned and contained. The system further includes pressure testing above-ground segmental coupling seals, by using moderate gas pressure applied via temporary gas hose and plug connections to respective ends of the operatively connected fluid transport line set.

The invention discloses a coal-heat co-mining method based on a high ground temperature mine. The method uses a goaf formed after coal mining as a reservoir; at the same time, a geothermal well is excavated into a thermal reservoir in a roadway. Hot water is pumped out through a geothermal exploitation well, and cold water is recharged through a geothermal recharging well; at the same time, a WSHP(Water Source Heat Pump) heat exchange station and a wind source heat pump station are built on surface to recover heat energy in the hot water and the hot wind. Through the method, coal mining can effectively change structure of a underground rock stratum, and exert a certain pressure relief and anti-reflection effect on the thermal reservoir, thereby improving heat extraction efficiency of thegeothermal well; by the method, the waste high ground temperature mine can also be reused for reproduction; the extracted geothermal resources are energy-saving and emission-reducing; and the geothermal well is excavated in the mine, which greatly reduces mining depth of the geothermal well, reduces drilling difficulty, shortens drilling cycle and reduces mining cost.

A heating/cooling system has improved operating efficiencies due to low superheat provisions and a specially configured compressor oil return. For certain systems, such as direct exchange geothermal heating/cooling applications having sub-surface heat exchanges extending at least 100 feet below the surface and using R-410A refrigerant, a specific compressor oil may be used to further improve efficiency.

A direct exchange heating/cooling system with at least one of a reduced compressor size, with a 500 psi high pressure cut-off switch, with a 98% efficient oil separator, with extra oil, operating at a higher pressure than an R-22 system, with receiver design parameters for efficiency and fox capacity, with geothermal heat exchange line set design parameters, with special heating/cooling expansion device sizing and design, with a specially sized air handler, and with a vapor line pre-heater.

The invention relates to a large-diameter steel sleeve heat exchange device capable of extracting the geothermal energy, and belongs to the technical field of heating ventilation air conditioners capable of saving energy and reducing emission. The device mainly includes a ground source heat exchange well composed of a steel sleeve with the bottom being sealed, a PE inner tube, a filtering device, an impurity precipitation groove, a heat insulating plate and a water circulating flow diversion device. According to the connection relation, the steel sleeve is inserted into the ground, the ground source heat pump heat source side returned water is communicated with an upper end opening of the steel sleeve, and the PE inner tube is arranged in the steel sleeve; the filtering device is fixed inside the bottommost end of the PE inner tube; the impurity precipitation groove is formed in the bottommost end of the steel sleeve well; the heat insulating plate wraps the PE inner tube; the water circulating flow diversion device is arranged at a water inlet of the well and connected to the PE inner tube. By means of the large-diameter steel sleeve heat exchange device capable of extracting the geothermal energy, the problem that a soil source heat pump system is large in occupied space is solved, and the heat exchange amount of a single-opening ground source well is greatly increased.

A geothermal apparatus comprising a first pipe for receiving a heat exchange liquid therein and a second pipe for receiving the heat exchange liquid therein and having a web integrally connected to each of the first and second pipes, between such pipes for holding the second pipe at a predetermined distance from the first pipe. This pair of pipes, which are integrally connected, are installed in the ground in a hole or bore and then are connected to a heat exchanger having a fluid inlet connected to one of the pipes, a fluid outlet connected to the other of the pipes and the end of the pipes remote from the heat exchanger which are connected together.

The invention discloses an ocean thermal energy and geothermal energy combined power generating system. The ocean thermal energy and geothermal energy combined power generating system mainly consists of a water storage pond, an ocean thermal gradient power generating subsystem, a water treatment subsystem, a water injection operating platform and a geothermal energy power generating subsystem. A cold seawater pipe is communicated with the water storage pond, and a warm seawater pipe is communicated with a water injection well of the geothermal energy power generating subsystem after passing through an ocean thermal gradient power generating subsystem which is lower than the sea level. The ocean thermal gradient power generating subsystem can run in the entire flow process without a pump through the pressure different action of the seawater and the technology such as a high-efficient condensing pipe, and the geothermal energy power generating subsystem adopts the cold seawater as a cooling water source to maintain lower condensation temperature. According to the ocean thermal energy and geothermal energy combined power generating system, not only is a purpose for improving the ocean thermal energy pure power generating efficiency realized, but also the geothermal energy power generating efficiency is also improved, and the energy utilization rate of the combined power generating system can be greatly improved.

The invention discloses a mine cooling system utilizing deep-well geothermal energy. The mine cooling system comprises an air treatment system, a geothermal energy recovery system and an underground cold water system. The air treatment system comprises a travelling trolley and an air treatment device arranged above the travelling trolley. The air treatment device comprises an air inlet located in the end of the air treatment device and an air outlet located in the tail of the air treatment device, and a first-stage air cooler, a first-stage rotary dehumidifier, a second-stage air cooler, a second-stage rotary dehumidifier, a third-stage air cooler, a water baffle and a fan are arranged between the air inlet and the air outlet. The invention further discloses a mine cooling method adopting the system. The air treatment system and the geothermal energy recovery system are arranged, the rotary dehumidifiers are arranged in the air treatment system, the geothermal energy is taken form a heat recovery filling body to be used for dehumidification regeneration of the rotary dehumidifiers, energy consumption of the mine cooling system is reduced, the downhole dehumidification difficult problem is solved, and the comfort of the mine working face is improved.