Renewable Energy Sources in a Post-Socialist Transitional Environment: The Influence of Social Geographic Factors on Potential Utilization of Very Shallow Geothermal Energy within Heating Systems in Small Serbian Town of Ub

Energetic stability is a precondition for a regular functioning of society and economy. Actual climate change raised the awareness of population and policy makers about the importance of exploited energy sources. Renewable energy sources are revealed as the solution which should satisfy both needs—a need for energetic stability, as well as a need for producing ‘clean’ and ‘sustainable’ energy, and therefore reduce humans’ influence on the climate change. Very shallow geothermal energy offers wide range for utilization, among others for heating and cooling living spaces. This article shows potentials of low temperature heating system networks in a small Serbian town of Ub. In addition to technical possibilities, this article combines geographical and social, as well as political and economic circumstances in the town of Ub, which emerge as a result of a complex (post-socialist) transitional vortex.

Comparison between Measured and Calculated Thermal Conductivities within Different Grain Size Classes and Their Related Depth Ranges

In the field of the efficiency of very shallow geothermal energy systems, there is still a significant need for research activity. To ensure the proper exploitation of this energy resource, the decisive geophysical parameters of soil must be well-known. Within this study, thermal conductivity, as a fundamental property for evaluating the geothermal potential of very shallow geothermal systems, was analyzed and measured with a TK04 device. A dataset, consisting of various geophysical parameters (thermal conductivity, bulk density, water content, and porosity) determined for a large range of different textural soil classes, was collated. In a new approach, the geophysical properties were visualized covering the complete grain size range. The comparison between the measured and calculated thermal conductivity values enabled an investigation with respect to the validity of the different Kersten equations. In the course of this comparison, the influence of effective bulk density was taken into account. In conclusion, both Kersten formulas should be used as recommended and regular bulk density corresponded better to the reference dataset representing the outcomes of the TK04 laboratory measurement. Another objective was to visualize the relation of thermal conductivities within their corresponding textural classes and the validity of Kersten formulas for various bulk densities, depths, and soils. As a result, the accessibility to information for expedient recommendations about the feasibility of very shallow geothermal systems will be improved. Easy, accessible know-how of the fundamentals is important for a growing renewable energy sector where very shallow geothermal installations can also cover heating and cooling demands.