Renewable Thermal Energy Systems Designed for Industrial Process Solutions in Multiple Industries

Abstract

Industrial decarbonization can and must be accelerated by removing fossil fuels from the provision of process heat. Doing so at temperatures less than 250°C which accounts for about 2/3 of industrial process heat (IPH) but is not receiving the attention of areas such as steel and cement, is a particularly promising opportunity. This paper looks at the results of two case studies for understanding the economics and potential for renewable thermal energy systems (RTES) in hybrid configurations to provide IPH. The first case study looks at using district heat as an input for a heat pump--three cases were run harvesting energy from ambient water (5°C), sewage water (20°C), and a solar collector (35°C). The second case study looks at the use of linear Fresnel collectors (LFCs) coupled with phase change material (PCM) thermal energy storage (TES) for direct steam generation (DSG). Accounting for elevated costs of infrastructure for each heat source, the levelized cost of heat (LCOH) of the first case study ranged from $4-$10 per million British Thermal Units (MMBTU). For the second case study modeling LFCs with PCM and TES, the results show that a LCOH of $9-$15 per MMBTU is possible, depending on the direct normal irradiance.