China will explore shallow geothermal energy in large and medium-sized cities

Shallow geothermal energy, which is contained in the soil, is a renewable energy source. Ground-source heat pump technology is the low-carbon technology that “borrows” energy from shallow geothermal energy, and is increasingly attracting attention from all parties. Recently, more than a dozen experts, scholars and relevant department leaders from domestic fields such as building energy conservation and ground source heat pump technology gathered in the Dushu Lake Science and Education Innovation Zone in the park, and focused on practical innovation, regional planning and industry planning of ground source heat pumps. And so on heated discussion.

Building energy consumption currently accounts for about 30% of China's total energy consumption, and this proportion is still increasing. In building energy conservation, renewable energy technologies such as solar energy and ground-source heat pumps are increasingly used. The potential of shallow geothermal energy in China is huge. According to conservative estimates, the annual shallow geothermal energy available in 287 cities above the prefecture level in China is equivalent to 356 million tons of standard coal, which can save energy equivalent to 248 million tons of standard energy. Coal, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 652 million tons. At present, China's ground-source heat pump technology has a building application area of ​​over 140 million square meters, and our province has an applied area of ​​18 million square meters, mainly in southern Jiangsu. In 2011, our province issued an annual area of ​​330,000 square meters of new construction applications in our city. It is estimated that by 2015, China’s use of shallow geothermal energy is equivalent to 52.69 million tons of standard coal.

The seminar was co-sponsored by the National Ground Source Heat Pump Committee and Suzhou Energy Environmental Energy Technology Co., Ltd. During the event, delegates discussed the application status, existing problems, and technology exploration of ground source heat pump technology.

Wang Bingjun, director of the Construction and Environmental Technology Development Center of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, said that in the past, the amount of shallow geothermal energy available in the country was unknown, and this was the reason why it was not taken seriously before. At the same time, there is still a lack of technical support in this area. China will initially identify the shallow geothermal energy storage, distribution characteristics, and corresponding geological features of major large and medium-sized cities, and conduct ground source heat pump and other suitable regional divisions to formulate relevant technical standards, providing decision-making basis for macroscopic planning and scientific management.