The effectiveness of geothermal systems in cooling residential buildings: a case study of a residential building in Alexandria, Egypt

The urbanization of cities, the corroding of green areas, and the increasing demand for electric energy lead to the formation of heat islands in cities and the appearance of the global climate change phenomenon. Therefore, it was necessary to resort to the use of renewable energy sources, such as geothermal energy, to be used in different applications, as it can be used to cool buildings in cities during the summer. This research deals with the benefits of using geothermal energy systems, their different types, and the possibility of their application in Egypt. Also discussing the effectiveness of the vertical closed geothermal system in residential buildings in Alexandria Governorate in Egypt to reach an answer to a question. The effectiveness of the geothermal energy system in residential buildings is to reduce the problem of rising temperatures, energy consumption for cooling, and carbon emissions and thus reduce the problem of the formation of heat islands in cities and the appearance of the global climate change phenomenon and reaching a sustainable, environmentally friendly building that achieves thermal comfort for humans through the use of a simulation program called TRNSYS-17, through which the current situation of the building was compared and the addition of a vertical closed geothermal system was assumed, the extent of its effectiveness was compared in the whole building, and the cost of a vertical closed geothermal system and a traditional air conditioning system (HVAC) in a building was compared (case study). Hence, the efficiency of the vertical closed geothermal system appeared to reduce electric energy consumption and carbon emissions in the whole building at Alexandria in Egypt, especially the ground floor, which reached thermal comfort for humans and worked to reduce electricity consumption and carbon emissions by up to 22.93% in the building as a whole. © The Author(s) 2024.