The usage of waste heat of industrial processes is a huge potentiality to increase energy efficiency and to reduce primary energy input. Up to now, the waste heat of industrial furnaces is frequently utilized only partially. Together with partners from industry and research, a new, innovative, and modular heat store was developed which upgrades the possibilities of waste heat recovery significantly. The heat store is characterized by:
- modular construction for waste heat flows between 100 kW and 10 MW
- optimal adaption to the use case by application of different heat storage materials
- small overall size
- stability for waste gases with temperatures up to 1200 °C
- low installation costs by use of reasonably priced heat storage materials
Together with the plant operator, a concept for the integration of the heat store and for the use of the stored heat is developed.
Based on this, the heat store is equipped with an automatic GIWEP control for heat charging and discharging. The control system comprises:
- reliable operation of the heat store without observation
- optimal exploitation of waste heat
- elimination of retroactive effects onto the furnace plant
- comprehensive report about heat recovery for the aim of energy management