EDITOR’S CHOICE u BABCOCK WANSON
Industrial process heating: 4 opportunities to improve sustainability
By Etienne Fourie, Technical Sales Manager, Babcock Wanson
In order to limit the devastating effects of global warming and climate change, the UK has legally committed to reaching net zero by 2050, meaning that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will be equal to the emissions removed from the atmosphere
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ndustry is responsible for 13.7 per cent of GHG emissions in the UK and, whilst strides have been made to reduce emissions, with 50 per cent of industrial energy consumption still provided by fossil fuels, there’s a long way to go. The government’s Review of Energy Policy 2024 acknowledges that a comprehensive industrial strategy needs to be developed, with a strong focus on decarbonisation.
THE DECARBONISATION PILLARS So how do we decarbonise industry? There are six pillars at the heart of decarbonisation: circular economy, renewables, grid infrastructure, energy efficiency, sustainable mobility, energy communities. To decarbonise across all these pillars, we have
to move from fossil fuels to electric primarily, with biofuel and hydrogen forming part of the mix. We also need to invest in carbon capture, utilisation and storage, especially for mitigating emissions in sectors with limited alternatives (e.g. cement production), and we need to digitise our processes. The latter will enable us to enhance data processing for efficiency gains, faster problem- solving, predictive maintenance and even virtual testing of solutions.
ENERGY TRANSITION SOLUTIONS FOR INDUSTRY As a major international supplier of boiler rooms and associated equipment, operating in more than 13 countries, Babcock Wanson Group has become a major player when it comes to energy transition, offering increasingly carbon-free heat production solutions for industry. Our ambition is to enable customers to reduce their fossil fuel consumption and achieve their targets for reducing their environmental footprint. We have identified four major energy transition opportunities available now for industry to consider in its drive to improved sustainability:
1. Decarbonisation Alternative solutions to the use of fossil fuels in steam and hot water production are readily available. Electrification is by far the most popular and practical means of decarbonising. In the light industry, heat pumps, electric resistance heaters
and electrode boilers offer an efficient means for both direct and indirect heating. Babcock Wanson has developed a full range of energy-efficient low and high voltage electric boilers that provide precise temperature control. In hard to abate sectors, due to the high
temperature heat requirements and the necessity to adapt heating technologies to cater to specific applications, solutions are sadly not as straightforward. However, across all industries, electricity costs and infrastructure are the main stumbling blocks in achieving electrification. Hybrid solutions that allow customers to use the best available energy source at any given time could be one way forward here. Combustion solutions based on renewable
energy such as hydrogen, biogas and oxycombustion are also on the table for consideration. Hydrogen may be necessary as part of the decarbonisation pathway for hard to abate industries, but the cost to transition from natural gas to hydrogen is considerable, and it has an increased tendency to form harmful NOx gases. Biofuels, on the other hand, are largely compatible with existing infrastructure but there is limited scope for increasing the scale of biomass production.
2. Energy performance Where low carbon solutions are not a practical
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option, focus on maximising the energy performance of existing boilers. There are several ways this can be achieved. Firstly, ensure you have a modern energy
efficient burner that is seamlessly matched with the heated vessel. The key to a good burner is its ability to provide very accurate control of excess air over the entire operating range, resulting in an excellent combustion efficiency no matter what the process load, and the lowest practicable operating costs. Secondly, adapt water treatment to the quality of the water available by ensuring the correct water treatment chemicals are used for the process at hand. Consider the use of ion exchange softening, thermal degassing (deaeration) and demineralisation by reverse osmosis or by resin exchange. Thirdly, consider remote monitoring of heating
systems. Our Navinergy digital platform provides 24/7 boiler room performance monitoring alerting users to deviations in equipment operation and water quality enabling them to take action where required. Combined, these actions reduce the consumption of fossil fuels, reducing NOx and CO2 emissions in the process.
3. Reduction of polluting emissions In addition to the actions listed above, polluting emissions can be reduced further through the adoption of equipment specifically designed to capture and eliminate air pollutants generated
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