Introduction

In this chapter, we introduce some basic information about two main issues: geothermal energy and shallow geothermal systems. A brief description of the availability of geothermal energy and the most common technologies for its utilization is given first. Then, focus is placed on shallow geothermal systems, which constitute the core subject of this book. For thiswe give an introduction on the types of shallow geothermal systems and the most commonly used geothermal borehole heat exchangers. The term shallow geothermal system will be used throughout this book to indicate a geothermal heat pump, a ground-source heat pump, or a ground heat pump, consisiting of borehole heat exchangers embedded in a soil mass.