Design and Development of Geothermal Cooling System for Composite Climatic Zone in India

The tropical climate buildings use about 70 % of operating energy for cooling of built environment. In composite climatic zone like Nagpur, Maharashtra, India several electro-mechanical cooling appliances viz., evaporative coolers, air conditioners, etc. are used. Application of geothermal cooling system is a very apt option for saving energy and reducing emission when compared to conventional cooling techniques. In the present work design methodology of geothermal cooling system is broadly elaborated and is applied to a case study of an educational building located in composite climate. The application of conventional and geothermal cooling systems is compared in terms of energy consumption. It is found that geothermal cooling system saves around 90 % of electricity as compared to air conditioner and 100 % of water as compared to evaporative coolers. This approach can further be extended for larger applications that will reduce consumption of energy and water in buildings.