Geological and groundwater aspects of ground-source heat pump systems for buildings: an overview
Weronika Koszuda¹
Łukasz Kaczmarek¹* (orcid id: 0000-0001-5207-3816),
Maria Grodzka-Łukaszewska¹ (orcid id: 0000-0002-3420-6811),
Michael Manton² (orcid id: 0000-0002-4812-6599),
Angelika Kaczmarek³ (orcid id: 0009-0000-2178-8894),
Goedele Verreydt⁴ (orcid id: 0009-0005-5626-8764),
Anna Regtuit⁵ (orcid id: 0009-0006-4429-6087)
¹ Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
² Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania
³ University of Genoa, Italy
⁴ University of Antwerp, Belgium
⁵ Werkgeversunie Business Poland BU, Belgium
Article (PDF)
Abstract:
In recent years, the European Union has been moving towards low-carbon energy systems,
which has led to a growing number of ground-source heat pump (GSHP) installations with vertical
borehole heat exchangers (BHEs). These systems help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions,
but their influence on the subsurface environment needs to be properly evaluated during both the
design and the operational phase. This paper presents a literature review of the environmental
aspects related to the installation and long-term use of closed-loop vertical BHEs. The review
analyses thermal changes in the ground around the boreholes, including cases where thermal
depletion may occur in arrays of multiple boreholes. Particular attention is given to the
hydrogeological effects of borehole construction in difficult geological condi- tions, such as
karst areas, where drilling through soluble carbonate rocks may encounter cav- ities and conduit
networks, and may create unwanted hydraulic connections between aquifers.
Keywords: environmental impact, groundwater protection, sustainable civil engineering,
drilling, energy transition
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