Earth Thermal Storage
Maintenance free home heating/cooling systems may rely more on the constant temperature of the earth for storing energy.
Are we heading for a new energy crisis, like the one that we experienced in the seventies? It might have been that event which caused me to become concerned with ways of reducing energy costs and alternative energies that can be used in our daily lives. I do not see any one energy source becoming what petroleum has been to our society; I do see many different forms of energy being used for different tasks. If you have read some of my blog posts over the past few months, you will have seen a theme of looking at the possibilities of these technologies for the home. Specifically, I admit to being curious as to how these innovations may be used in Houston. It has been said that my city is the most heavily air conditioned place in the world, which requires a good deal of power; and this may be why Houston is looking more closely at green power technologies. Consider this week in weather here. At the beginning of this week, we are experiencing temperatures in the eighties (degrees Fahrenheit), but by the Thursday we will be in the fifties. Heating and cooling needed in one week. Include the humidity, you will see dealing with a home’s HVAC system in Houston a great testing ground for creating a robust green technology solution.
One technology that uses natural heat for the home is a heat pump. The concept is simple in its science: the only point where there is no heat is the temperature known as absolute zero. Since there is always heat in the atmosphere, you can take that heat for your home during colder weather. If it is warm, take the heat in the home to pump it out of the house. The problem arises that our technology only allows this air conditioning unit to effectively work above certain temperatures. One way to resolve this is to change the system to a geo-thermal one. Whereas outside air can experience large shifts, the temperature within the earth stays at a constant range at specific depths. Great idea, but it can be expensive to install. Expensive equals not going to be commonly used. Reduce the cost to find that such a system could reduce energy usage. Improving the efficiency and cost of green technologies would mean that they would be more commonly used.
How efficient is solar power for the home? Actually, it is not that great. The panels do not convert all of the energy which the capture from the sun into electricity. Once you do have the electricity, you find that we have batteries that are not the best at storing this green power. These last lines sound negative for solar. I am pro solar technology though, and I am positive that these problems will be resolved. Anytime I see a mention that solar can be made more efficient, I pay special attention. That is what lead me to examine the idea of a earth thermal storage as a means for improving solar power. The concept here is also simple science. If you warm a thermal mass, that mass will retain that heat (energy) for awhile. It will radiate that heat back to its surroundings. The best example of this concept being used for home heating is the fireplace known as a European fireplace. The heated air is forced through a passage lined with bricks to create a thermal mass. These bricks radiate the heat out to the home for some time after the fire has expired. Even having the sun shine through a window down onto a tile or cement floor will create this effect. The earth can also store this type of energy (heat). You may use this concept if you have a compost pile. Water heating systems that use compost piles play off of this heat.
The green energy produced by a solar panel can then heat your home using earth thermal storage. The Romans invented a radiant heating system which passed heated air through tubes that ran through the floors and walls. Current radiant heating systems mainly rely upon tubing which carries a heated liquid (usually water) underneath your floor covering. Heat rises, so the heat from radiant heating can be very comfortable for a room. Do you remember those old bathroom heaters which relied on a wire being energized? We could take the green electricity from a solar panel passed through wires that are in a thermal mass, which then radiates that heat back into a building. This idea originated in 1978 in a paper written by Lilleleht, Beard, and Fafarman. By heating the ground beneath a foundation, that heat can be used to heat the home, even after nightfall. Electricity in the batteries would not have to be used. Like the Romans, we could install these wires in the walls. I mention this, because it may be the best solution for existing homes. We might not be able to dig underneath a completed home, but we could access the walls and ceilings. This version of the system could be installed in a ceiling. Alright heat rises, so it would take more energy to heat a room, but that is more acceptable than tearing down a house.
Would I need solar panels to use such a earth thermal storage? It is my belief that most homeowners will not be obtaining their green energy from equipment on their own home. I feel that service providers (the utility companies) will be the main supplier of green power to the average homeowner. There are two methods that the concept of earth thermal storage could be used by a homeowner. I started this post with an explanation of a heat pump, and we could improve this device. In a paper written in 1982 by Ternes, a study conducted in Knoxville was detailed about improving a heat pump on a house which sat on pier and beams. Instead of taking the air from the general exterior, the air could pass over the earth (remember it is at a constant temperature) before going into the pump. The earth becomes a heat exchanger in this scenario. This is a brilliant idea, but I am not sure if any manufacturer is using this technology for their heat pumps. The second method is the same concept mentioned in the previous paragraph. The wires heating the walls, ceilings, or foundation would receive their power off of the grid. In this method, the wires would be heated at night. Activating it at night uses power when it is at its cheapest during a non-peak time. At least one firm is providing such a system.
I have not heard many people discuss this technology. I was wondering if such a technology would work in Houston. Radiant heating is more firmly established in the northern parts of the United States, but there is no reason it could not be used here. As mentioned, the real problem in this region is that we have to constantly switch between heating and cooling systems, this makes our forced air systems so easy to sue. Heat pumps would be the logical substitute for them, but many homes do not have pier and beam foundations. It would be nice to have toasty feet in the morning though.
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