USP engineers are advancing with the technique of superficial geothermal energy, which can reduce the value of the electricity bill by up to 40% and eliminate the use of air conditioning in some homes

In the future, traditional air conditioning will be replaced by a system that can be cleaner and generate greater savings in the electricity bill. This technology consists of surface geothermal energy that is being studied by engineers at USP, through tubes that extract the icy air that is present underground, where it is generally cooler than on the surface.

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How does surface geothermal energy work?

The project, which will put an end to air conditioning, was developed by the team of professor Cristina de Hollanda Cavalcanti Tsuha, from USP, more precisely from the partnership between the School of Engineering of São Carlos and colleagues from the Polytechnic School.

USP engineers will test the application of surface geothermal energy through pipes placed inside elements of the foundations that support the buildings. Once this is done, a machine is responsible for pumping water through tubes to the bottom. The water cools down with the temperature of the subsoil and returns with the intention of climatizing the surface, making the use of air conditioning unnecessary and reducing the value of the electricity bill.

The USP project coordinator says that the idea is to use polyethylene tubes and it will be the first building to use surface geothermal energy for foundations in SP, and possibly even throughout Brazil, not least because no other has been seen so far.

System that will replace the air conditioning can reach a temperature of 23°C

The surface geothermal energy system is functional because the ground never heats up or cools down compared to the surface. A few meters deep, the temperature always remains at the average for the region, as is the case in the western region of São Paulo, where the tests are being carried out, where the soil temperature is usually 23°C, although on the surface it reaches 30 °C.

According to engineers from USP, the surface geothermal energy system is capable of reducing the electricity bill by 40% to 60% in commercial buildings, including hotels and hospitals. According to experts, air conditioning is responsible for half of the electricity bill in a company and 25% in an average home.

What is missing to use surface geothermal energy in Brazilian homes?

According to the researcher, the system still needs a pump to send the liquid through the pipe and bring it back. In Europe, the technique has been working for some time, where surface geothermal energy is used to heat or cool buildings.

Since the 80s, surface geothermal energy has been used in skyscrapers and other buildings in countries such as the USA and Austria. In addition, the coordinator of the engineers also explains that taking advantage of the constant subsoil temperature is widely used to store wines in France, or even in other older cases, such as ancestors who hid in caves to protect themselves from low or high temperatures above from the surface.