A thermal-energy exchange and storage system has a borefield with a core zone and at least one capacity expansion zone. Each of the core zone and the at least one capacity expansion zone have a plurality of boreholes. The at least one capacity expansion zone is positioned outwards from and encircling the core zone and each additional capacity expansion zone is positioned outwards from and encircling the previous capacity expansion zone. A heat source is provided in fluid communication with a heat exchanger. An injection system circulates an operating fluid. The injection system has at least one U-tube installed within the plurality of boreholes and operating fluid is circulated between the at least one U-tube and the heat exchanger for transferring heat from the heat source. An extraction system is provided for extracting heat stored in the system for use in an infrastructure.

The present disclosure relates to a method for storing excess energy from at least one energy producing source, as thermal energy, using an existing geologic formation. First and second storage zones formed in a geologic region may be used to store high temperature and medium high temperature brine. When excess energy is available from the energy producing source, a quantity of the medium high temperature brine is withdrawn and heated using the energy supplied by the energy source to form a first new quantity of high temperature brine, which is then injected back into the first storage zone. This forces a quantity of medium high temperature brine present in the first storage zone into the second storage zone, to maintain a desired quantity of high temperature brine in the first storage zone and a desired quantity of medium high temperature brine in the second storage zone.

A method and arrangement for conditioning a building space of a building includes extracting heat energy from the building space to heat pump working fluid with a primary heat exchange connection of a heat pump and releasing heat energy from the heat pump working fluid with a secondary heat exchange connection of the heat pump to geothermal working fluid of a geothermal heat exchanger. The method further includes releasing heat energy from the geothermal working fluid to ground at lower part of the ground hole having depth at least 300 meters, producing solar energy with a solar energy apparatus provided to the building, and supplying the solar energy to the heat pump or to the geothermal heat exchanger.

A simple, cost effective system and method for flexibly managing heat pump source fluid is disclosed. The source fluid flow-manager significantly enhances heat pump efficiency by selectively coupling it to renewable energy resources via geothermal, solar, and ambient air thermal exchanges. The sophisticated interconnection of these thermal exchanges also reduces installation costs. A preferred embodiment of the source fluid flow-manager consists of three T-port valves, two pumps and a plurality of connection points, and operates in at least twelve modes. These modes selectively interconnect source fluid flow between fluid utilizing units, such as heat pumps, and a variety of thermal exchange and/or storage units, such as hot or cold underground thermal storage-and-exchange regions, dry coolers and solar thermal collectors. The valves and pumps are controlled by a programmed controller, guided by input from flow meters and thermometers. Operational modes are matched to thermal need, and to system and environmental status.

A geo-energy production system and method extracts thermal energy from a reservoir formation, and stores either thermal waste heat or excess heat in a storage zone of the reservoir formation. A compressed fluid injection injects an unheated, compressed working fluid into the storage zone. A fluid injection well injects a working fluid laden with thermal waste heat or excess heat into the storage zone. The storage zone is located below a caprock layer and above a native brine zone of the reservoir formation and is partially circumscribed by a hot brine storage zone. The compressed working fluid assists with a withdrawal of pressurized brine residing below and/or to the sides of the storage zone. A compressed CO.sub.2, N.sub.2, or air production well helps to remove compressed working fluid from the storage zone for use in power production.

A simple, cost effective system and method for flexibly managing heat pump source fluid is disclosed. The source fluid flow-manager significantly enhances heat pump efficiency by selectively coupling it to renewable energy resources via geothermal, solar, and ambient air thermal exchanges. The sophisticated interconnection of these thermal exchanges also reduces installation costs. A preferred embodiment of the source fluid flow-manager consists of three T-port valves, two pumps and a plurality of connection points, and operates in at least twelve modes. These modes selectively interconnect source fluid flow between fluid utilizing units, such as heat pumps, and a variety of thermal exchange and/or storage units, such as hot or cold underground thermal storage-and-exchange regions, dry coolers and solar thermal collectors. The valves and pumps are controlled by a programmed controller, guided by input from flow meters and thermometers. Operational modes are matched to thermal need, and to system and environmental status.

A system and method to store and retrieve energy includes a heat source or an energy consumer thermally connected to a fluid. The fluid is transported through a first well fluidically connected to a second well. A slot is sawed into a rock below the earth's surface and a cable and tubing connect the first well to the second well. The cable and the tubing are partially encapsulated by casing, wherein the cable stores heat. A plurality of materials is filled into the slot. A first hole is disposed beneath a first rig and surrounds the first well. A second hole is disposed beneath a second rig and surrounds the second well. The first hole and the second hole are configured to be vertical or slanted.

Methods and systems for producing thermal or electrical power from geothermal wells. Power is produced from a working fluid circulating in a closed loop within a geothermal well. Geothermal steam or brine at depth transfers heat at higher temperature than at the surface to the working fluid. The working fluid is then used to produce power directly or indirectly. The geothermal production fluid may be stimulated through use of gas lifting or submersible pumps to assist in bringing such fluids to the surface or through the use blockers to encourage the downhole steam advection and brine recirculation through the resource in a connective loop. The working fluid may be compatible with existing direct heat or power generation equipment; i.e., water for flash plants or hydrocarbons/refrigerants for binary plants.

A geothermal heat exchanger, a geothermal heat arrangement and to a method in connection with a geothermal heat arrangement. The geothermal heat exchanger includes a piping arrangement having a rise pipe and a drain pipe, and a first pump arranged to the piping arrangement. The rise pipe and drain pipe are arranged in fluid communication with each other for circulating the primary working fluid. The rise pipe is provided with a first thermal insulation surrounding the rise pipe along at least part of the length of the rise pipe and the first pump is arranged to circulate the primary working fluid in a direction towards a lower end of the rise pump.

A cooling system transfers thermal energy from a temperature-critical reservoir to a heat sink. The system has an intermediate reservoir which is thermally interposed between the temperature-critical reservoir and the heat sink. The intermediate reservoir serves as an energy buffer between the two reservoirs by accepting thermal energy from the temperature-critical reservoir, storing that energy, and then transferring it to a heat sink by means of a temperature-driven process rather than by means of a heat pump. Transfer of thermal energy from the intermediate reservoir to the heat sink is temporally coordinated with naturally occurring temperature variations of the heat sink so that all thermal energy transfer processes conducted by the system are temperature-driven.