Self-refrigeration keel-type foundation system

Abstract

A self-refrigeration keel-type foundation system for supporting a structure, such as a building floor slab, hot or cold pipelines, bridging foundation and the like, above a permafrost earth strata located below the ground includes at least one and preferably a pair of elongated hollow containers underlying the structure, a load bearing assembly mounted on the upper sides of the containers for supporting the structure in a spaced relation above the containers, and a passive arrangement for transferring heat to the atmosphere above the ground via a heat exchanger unit located above the ground in substantial contact with the atmosphere, from the region of the permafrost earth strata adjacent to and supporting the containers via a natural thermal-siphon flow of refrigerant fluid in a refrigerant flow circuit extending through the containers and heat exchange unit and extending therebetween to thereby maintain the permafrost earth strata in a frozen condition.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.