Recovering Energy by Recovering Waste Heat

Experience shows waste-heat recovery based on recuperator system technology can achieve significant energy savings

It is possible for metalcasters to achieve significant savings on several types of recoverable energy sources, and for the energy savings to more than pay for the necessary equipment and installation in less than three years. Public utility companies in the U.S. are mandated to spend 25% of their profits on renewable or recoverable energy. The process of recovering dirty, high-suspended particulate matter, and CO₂ from the furnace exhaust to pre-heat burner combustion air, or make-up air, or another process in the plant, is eligible for rebates from most electric and gas power companies.

Past attempts to implement this type of heat recovery usually failed due to disintegration of the conventional heat exchanger pipes. Recently, the U.S. DOE reported: “Recuperators have been successfully used to preheat the air, however, in many cases the metallic recuperator tubes have a relatively limited lifetime – six to nine months.”

Schaefer Group set out to determine the cause of the rapid tube degradation and then to recommend alternative materials or operating conditions to prolong the life of the recuperator tubes — and recommends the Thermosyphon Heat Pipe heat exchangers based on its performance effectiveness and the results of specific installations.
Read the full report, "Fuel Savings and Rebates from Recoverable Energy"