1. School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, 056038, China.
2. Hebei HVAC Engineering Technology Innovation Center, Handan, 056038, China.
3. Hebei University of Engineering Science, Shijiazhuang, 050091, China.
4. Institute of Energy Resources, Hebei Academy of Sciences, Shijiazhuang Hebei 050081, China.
Abstract Ground source heat pump systems demonstrate significant potential for northern rural heating applications; however, the effectiveness of these systems is often limited by challenging geological conditions. For instance, in certain regions, the installation of buried pipes for heat exchangers may be complicated, and these pipes may not always serve as efficient low-temperature heat sources for the heat pumps of the system. To address this issue, the current study explored the use of solar-energy-collecting equipment to supplement buried pipes. In this design, both solar energy and geothermal energy provide low-temperature heat to the heat pump. First, a simulation model of a solar?ground source heat pump coupling system was established using TRNSYS. The accuracy of this model was validated through experiments and simulations on various system configurations, including varying numbers of buried pipes, different areas of solar collectors, and varying volumes of water tanks. The simulations examined the coupling characteristics of these components and their influence on system performance. The results revealed that the operating parameters of the system remained consistent across the following configurations: three buried pipes, burial depth of 20 m, collector area of 6 m2,and water tank volume of 0.5 m3; four buried pipes, burial depth of 20 m, collector area of 3 m2, and water tank volume of 0.5 m3; and five buried pipes with a burial depth of 20 m. Furthermore, the heat collection capacity of the solar collectors spanning an area of 3 m2 was found to be equivalent to that of one buried pipe.Moreover, the findings revealed that the solar?ground source heat pump coupling system demonstrated a lower annual cumulative energy consumption compared to the ground source heat pump system, presenting a reduction of 5.31% compared to the energy consumption of the latter.
Fund: This work was supported by 2024 Central Guidance Local Science and Technology Development Fund Project "Study on the mechanism and evaluation method of thermal pollution in water bodies, as well as research on thermal carrying capacity".(Grant 246Z4506G), and Key Research and Development Project in Hebei Province: "Key Technologies and Equipment Research and Demonstration of Multiple Energy Complementary (Electricity, Heat, Cold System) for Solar Energy, Geothermal Energy, and Phase Change Energy" (Grant 236Z4310G), and the Hebei Academy of Sciences Key Research and Development Program "Research on Heat Transfer Mechanisms and Effi cient Applications of Intermediate and Deep Geothermal Energy" (22702).
About author: Luo Jinghui graduated from Hebei University of Engineering with a Bachelor's degree in Building Environment and Equipment Engineering from Hebei University of Engineering in 2011 and a Master's degreein Heating , Gas Suppl y,Ventilation, and Air Conditioning Engineering in 2014. He is currently a lecturer and the director of the Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Department at the School of Energy and Environmental Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering and is pursuing his Ph.D. His research areas include geothermal energy development and utilization, low-grade heat recovery, and heat pump theory and applications.
Cite this article:
. Capacity matching and optimization of solarground source heat pump coupling systems[J]. APPLIED GEOPHYSICS, 2025, 22(3): 739-750.
2025, Vol. 22 
