Borehole latent energy storage system integrated with solar thermal collectors and heat pumps

In cold climates, borehole thermal energy storage (BTES) systems can reduce heating energy-use by allowing seasonal storage of solar thermal energy. Here, a semianalytical model is developed to investigate the potential of a novel BTES integrated with heat pumps and latent energy storage. The proposed concept is investigated for the case of Drake Landing solar community. This work demonstrates that the combined effect ofheat pump, solar injection and latent energy storage in the ground can reduce significantly the complexity of the system and solar thermal collector requirement. Furthermore, the proposed system improves the performance of solar energy storage.