ABSTRACT
The application of groundwater cooling systems is quickly becoming an established technology in the UK with numerous installations having been completed for a wide range of building types, both new build and existing. Buildings in the UK are significant users of energy, accounting for 60% of UK carbon emissions in relation to their construction and occupation. The thermal capacity of the ground can provide an efficient means of tempering the internal climate of buildings. Former industrial cities like Nottingham, Birmingham, Liverpool and London have a particular problem with rising groundwater levels due to a reduction in groundwater abstraction for use in manufacturing, particularly since the 1970s. Open loop systems generally involve the direct abstraction and use of groundwater, typically from aquifers, although there also are systems which utilize water in former underground mineral workings. The properties of the aquifer are important in ensuring the necessary flow rates to achieve the energy requirements.
