| Project Detail |
This Renewable Energy for Process Heat Opportunity Study aims to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy in industrial and commercial process heating.
Need
Process heating currently accounts for the largest share of fossil fuel use in Australian manufacturing, with renewable energy technologies historically being unable to compete financially.
The project involves identifying potential demonstration projects that can integrate renewable energy technologies into existing industrial and commercial heating processes.
Trials will focus on agriculture, dairy, food and beverage manufacturing, textiles/leather, paper manufacturing, and commercial laundries, and will be delivered in two stages:
A market scan will be conducted during stage one to review renewable technologies and opportunities in Australia. Ten sites will be selected for pre-feasibility studies of technical and commercial potential.
Stage two involves five selected sites progressing to a full feasibility study and development of individual business cases that could support implementation.
Action
The recipient will work with businesses to develop studies to provide improvements to process heating supplied by boilers, steam/hot water systems and direct process heating (with a focus on heating applications up to 95°C).
The studies will identify and consider opportunities such as:
heat pumps and other electricity technologies (where supplied by increased use of renewable energy) such as microwave, induction, mechanical vapour recompression
renewable options including solar thermal, and biomass/biogas
non-thermal approaches which may reduce or replace thermal load such as mechanical dewatering (e.g. membrane technology or centrifuges, high pressure processing).
Associated storage (electrical, thermal, material) and demand management/controls as required.
Outcome
This project aims to increase the uptake of renewable energy through:
direct application of renewable energy for process heating
application of high temperature heat pumps, which use renewable electricity and/or very efficiently transfer heat from the
surrounding environment to the industrial process
application of other energy productivity technologies, together with increased use of renewable electricity. |
