Process and Energy Optimization
HOW WE CAN HELP?
Let us at Erivac, together with our partners PESINT and KOERTING, help you find solutions to your problems in your most challenging process applications.
We are a leading supplier of a large and high-quality range of process equipment such as ejectors, thermocompressors, vacuum systems, wet scrubbers, aerators and agitators, welded heat exchangers, cooling towers, refrigerant coolers, steam traps and more.
In order to get the most out of these equipment we can also provide services such as:
Process and Energy Optimization
Steam and Condensate System Diagnosis
Waste Energy Recovery
Pulp Drying, Paper and Tissue Machine Diagnosis and Optimization
Vacuum System Diagnosis and Troubleshooting
Combining our broad knowledge with high-end technical solutions and equipment, we can help you find process solutions with higher availability, less maintenance necessity and lower energy consumption.
Process and Energy Optimization
Process and energy optimization involves analyzing and refining operational workflows to minimize power consumption, reduce carbon footprints, and lower costs while maintaining or exceeding production outputs. It is achieved through system-wide tuning, smart metering, process control, and equipment upgrades.
Key Optimization Strategies
- Smart Metering: Expanding sensors across a facility acts as the “eyes and ears” to map out energy flows, analyze consumption, and identify specific areas of waste.
- Process Tuning: Aligning older equipment with modern operational demands to eliminate redundancies and correct poor control loops.
- Heat Integration & Recovery: Capturing and redirecting waste heat across process units to reduce the total external energy required.
Core Benefits
- Cost Reduction: Balancing energy efficiency directly impacts the bottom line by minimizing total operational and fuel costs.
- Sustainability: Helps companies meet strict emission constraints and environmental reporting requirements.
- Equipment Longevity: Reduced wear and tear on machinery operating at peak efficiency.
Steam and Condensate System Diagnosis and Optimization
Optimizing a steam and condensate system requires diagnosing four core areas: generation, distribution, consumption, and recovery. To eliminate energy waste, prevent water hammer, and increase efficiency, you must establish a continuous monitoring and maintenance loop focusing on root-cause analysis rather than reactive repairs.
Root Cause Diagnosis of Common Issues
- Steam Traps (The Hidden Culprit): Faulty steam traps (either blowing live steam or failing closed and flooding equipment) are the largest source of thermal losses. Use diagnostic methods like ultrasonic testing and thermography to detect temperature drops across the trap, indicating a clog or bypass.
- Water Hammer: Often caused by inadequate pipe grading, undersized traps, or incorrect start-up procedures. Diagnose the root cause by mapping the steam line pitch (which should fall freely in the direction of flow) and inspecting drain pockets.
- Condensate Contamination: If unmonitored, contaminated condensate can damage boiler tubes. Diagnose pH, conductivity, and iron levels continuously to prevent severe corrosion.
- Heat Exchanger Stall: When steam pressure drops below the required back pressure of the condensate system, it stalls. This leads to flooding, corrosion, and water hammer. Diagnosis involves checking the pressure differential between the heat exchanger and the condensate return line.
Key Optimization Actions
- Maximize Condensate Return: Every 6°C rise in boiler feedwater temperature roughly equals a 1% reduction in fuel usage. Ensure high-pressure condensate is flashed and returned efficiently.
- Heat Recovery: Install stack economizers and flash vessels to capture waste heat, which can pre-heat make-up water or feed deaerators.
- Steam Trap Optimization: Substitute and install Steam Traps that are designed for the specific process position and can operate without failure for decades.
- Thermal Recompression: Reuse of waste and flash steam using Thermocompressors for improved energy efficiency.
- Insulation: Ensure all steam mains and distribution lines are adequately insulated. Poor insulation leads to excessive condensate formation downstream, which overworks steam traps.
Waste Energy Recovery
Waste energy recovery in the process industry captures and repurposes byproduct thermal or kinetic energy that would otherwise be exhausted into the environment. It is a vital strategy for improving plant efficiency, lowering operating costs, and reducing carbon footprints.
Key Optimization Actions
- Heat Recovery: Install stack economizers and flash vessels to capture waste heat, which can pre-heat make-up water or feed deaerators.
- Steam Trap Optimization: Substitute and install Steam Traps that are designed for the specific process position and can operate with failure for decades.
- Thermal Recompression: Reuse of waste and flash steam using Thermocompressors for improved energy efficiency.
- Insulation: Ensure all steam mains and distribution lines are adequately insulated. Poor insulation leads to excessive condensate formation downstream, which overworks steam traps.