Despite the significant number of operating energy geostructures in Europe, the development of specific design rules and dimensioning approaches has been slow. Attempts to provide a set of recommendations for piles, diaphragm walls and tunnels subjected to temperature variations were carried out starting from 2005 in Switzerland, Germany, United Kingdom and France. However, most of these documents provides only general indications and does not allow the adoption of this technology across Europe for a wider range of projects.
The COST ACTION TU1405 GABI (Geothermal Applications for Buildings and Infrastructures) synthesized research and practice-based knowledge from across national and disciplinary boundaries in order develop better understanding and more widespread use of this technology.
Dr Spiros Papefthimiou was a plenary speaker in the final GABI workshop held at IFSTTAR Paris, 31 January 2019, with a presentation about the “Role of Renewable Energies and Geothermal applications”.