Services
- Process and Energy Optimization
- Steam and Condensate System Diagnosis
- Vacuum System Troubleshooting
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.
Pulp Drying, Paper and Tissue Machine Diagnosis and Optimization
Advanced steam and condensate solutions for the pulp and paper industry
In the manufacture of pulp, board, paper and tissue, efficient steam and condensate management is key to improving product quality, reducing costs and optimising production. Together with PESINT, we design advanced steam and condensate recovery systems that maximise heat transfer, eliminate waste and improve operational efficiency.
Our solutions are designed to ensure efficient drying, reduce energy consumption and increase system reliability, helping our clients establish themselves as leaders in the paper industry.
Principal Characteristics
Thermal Engineering backed by Cutting-Edge Technology
We use equipment from leading brands and specialised software to select the most suitable components, ensuring maximum efficiency and reliability. Furthermore, through detailed industrial energy audits, we are committed to turning your operating costs into measurable and sustainable savings through design and energy optimisation.
As specialists in thermal energy, we assist various companies with thermal efficiency in their industrial processes, ensuring not only compliance with emissions regulations but also reducing overall energy consumption. Consequently, we are committed to delivering advanced steam solutions designed to reduce both the water footprint and CO2 emissions without compromising process efficiency.
System Analysis and Optimisation
Together with Pesint, we offer in-depth technical analyses to identify inefficiencies in steam and condensate systems.
We use thermal measurements, TAPPI evaporation curve analyses and simulations using our proprietary software to diagnose losses, validate performance and propose specific improvements that generate quantifiable energy savings.
Our studies go beyond mere recommendations: we integrate application engineering and design to implement long-lasting solutions, tailored to the actual conditions of each plant.
Ideal for industries seeking to optimise their energy consumption, reduce steam venting and increase their condensate recovery.
Waste Heat Recovery
We integrate systems that harness waste heat, working in partnership with hood designers to reduce energy consumption and emissions.
Flexible Pressure Control
We offer three approaches to pressure control: thermocompressors, cascade and hybrid, tailored to different paper types and production requirements.
Vacuum System Diagnosis and Troubleshooting
Erivac can, together with Koerting, provide diagnosis and troubleshooting of steam ejector vacuum systems. A well-performing vacuum system operating close to design conditions ensures reliable, trouble-free and energy-effective operation. With time, wear will occur, performance will be reduced and energy consumption will increase. We can help you find solutions for these problems and solutions to return operation to design point with better energy efficiency.
Troubleshooting requires isolating the issue to motive steam supply, cooling water, process air leaks, or internal wear. The most critical first step is to check for system air leaks and verify that the motive steam is completely dry and delivered at the correct pressure.
Motive Steam Issues
- Symptom: Low vacuum, surging, or ejector failing to break the sonic shock wave.
- Causes: Wet steam, incorrect pressure, or eroded nozzles.
- Troubleshooting Steps:
- Check steam quality: Ensure lines are properly insulated and install a steam separator with a working trap directly before the inlet. Wet steam causes severe erosion to the nozzle throat and drastically reduces capacity.
- Verify pressure: Ensure motive steam pressure exactly matches the design specifications. Low pressure drops the compression ratio; excessively high pressure chokes the diffuser.
- Inspect for wear: Measure the nozzle throat diameter. If it is more than 15% oversized relative to the nominal size (often due to erosion or galvanic corrosion of the threads), replace the nozzle.
Condenser & Cooling Water Problems
- Symptom: High inter-stage pressure, overloading of the subsequent ejector stage, or surging.
- Causes: Fouled condenser tubes, warm cooling water, or flooding.
- Troubleshooting Steps:
- Check water flow: Verify the inlet temperature and flow rate. An excessive temperature rise or high cooling water temperature means you need to increase flow.
- Check for flooding: Ensure interstage condensers are draining properly. If the barometric leg is blocked, condensate will back up and kill the ejector vacuum.
- Inspect internals: Clean fouled tubes and verify that water spray nozzles are not eroded or clogged.
Air Leaks & Overloading
- Symptom: Gradually degrading vacuum levels, requiring higher loads than the system was designed for.
- Causes: Process air in-leakage, non-condensable gas overload, or leaking isolation valves.
- Troubleshooting Steps:
- Isolate the system: Close the suction valve to the vacuum process to see if the ejector alone pulls a deep vacuum (the “deadhead” test). If it does, the leak is in your process equipment.
- Check for leaks: Inspect flanges, valves, and expansion joints under vacuum for air ingress.
- Monitor load: Ensure you haven’t introduced unexpectedly high non-condensable gas loads (such as steam leaks or light hydrocarbons) that overwhelm the first stage.