Performance of thermally enhanced geo-energy piles and walls

Abstract

This study aims to evaluate the impacts of using thermally enhanced concrete on the thermal performance of geoenergy structures and interaction between the thermo-active-structures and adjacent dry and partly saturated soils. Experiments using a fully instrumented testing rig were carried out on prototypes of energy pile and diaphragm wall made from normal concrete and thermally enhanced concrete by the addition of graphTHERM powder. Results illustrated that adding 36% of graphTHERM powder to the concrete by weight of cement was found to double the thermal conductivity of concrete and improve the stiffness by 15% without detrimental effects on the compressive strength. The heat transfer efficiency of energy pile and energy diaphragm wall made from thermally enhanced concrete was significantly improved by 50% and 66% respectively, in comparison with the efficiency of the same type of energy structure that was made from a typical normal concrete.