Established energy recovery applications
Employing compressor energy recovery is a well-established practice for a number of applications and processes. Let’s take look at some well-known uses of recovered hot water.
Pre-heating boiler water
Boilers are an omni-present piece of equipment in just about any type of facility. They are used to heat rooms and products, and to produce steam for production purposes.
While boilers are usually larger in terms of kW than the installed power of a facility’s compressor(s), recovered hot water can pre-heat boiler water up to 85°C/185°F to reduce their energy use.
Cleaning in place
Many food and beverage facilities need hot potable water to clean production lines or tanks containing foodstuffs. Why spend money producing it when you can use recovered hot water? An Atlas Copco energy recovery system in combination with a storage tank can provide the large batches of water in the short time that Cleaning in Place typically requires. Operators can select a temperature of up to 55°C/131°F and up to 75°C/167°F if the water doesn't come into contact with people.
Cleaning in Place is probably the easiest recovered hot water application. Users can store the hot water in a tank until they need it. No complex regulation is required, nor is there a need for a complex analysis of how to connect it to a process.
Bottle washing
Some industries use hot (potable) water to clean products like bottles, cans, metal machined parts, etc. Like Cleaning In Place, this requires a lot of water of up to 75°C/167°F for a specific amount of time. Compressor energy recovery is a great source of this hot water, eliminating the need to produce it.
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There are also some lesser-known uses of recovered waste heat. It doesn’t make them a less interesting solution for many businesses. On the contrary. Here are some examples of compressor energy recovery you might not know…
Generating cold water
You don’t need to focus on applications that require heat. You can use your compressor’s hot water supply in combination with an absorption chiller to generate water with a temperature as low as 7°C/ 45°F for applications that need a continuous or prolonged supply of cold water. These include HVAC systems, and manufacturing that uses (and needs to cool) molds for metal profiles or plastic items such as bottles and containers. With an Atlas Copco energy recovery system, 100 kW of hot water can generate 70 kW of cold water.
Selling waste heat to neighboring companies
If you have no use for all your waste heat, you can sell your excess hot water to neighboring companies who can use it for heating or cooling purposes. For example, a swimming pool in The Netherlands has relied for years on the heat captured by its next-door manufacturing plant to heat its pool water. This smart re-use has allowed them to keep energy costs down and to meet their sustainable building goals.
Selling waste heat to a district heating system
If you have a district heating system nearby, you can also sell them your excess waste heat.
