Ebook: Analysis and Design of Energy Geostructures: Theoretical Essentials and Practical Application

Urban systems present an enormous demand for innovative solutions to meet human
activity needs. In many situations, these needs require built environments and are
associated with substantial amounts of energy requirements. While it is a critical chal-
lenge to develop buildings and infrastructures whose energy requirements are sup-
plied with a limited impact on the environment, employing renewable energy
sources is essential for this purpose. So-called energy geostructures represent a break-
through multifunctional technology for the sustainable development of present and
future urban systems.
A substantial amount of renewable geothermal energy is readily available in the
ground. Geostructures, including foundations and general earth-contact structures, are
essential means for the structural support of built environments through the ground.
By leveraging the previous concepts, energy geostructures represent integrated earth-
contact structures and thermal energy carriers for all built environments. Energy geos-
tructures particularly explicate a multifunctional role for buildings and infrastructures:
reinforce soils and rocks for their structural support and, at the same time, extract or
store thermal energy from or in the subsurface for the supply of their heating and
cooling energy requirements.