low-cost / short term opportunities
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Energy Saving Opportunity
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Action to Check
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1. Reduce excess combustion air to minimum
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1. CO2/O2 measurement
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2. Maximise completeness of combustion
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2. Soot/CO measurement
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3. Maintain boiler cleanliness (soot/scale)
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3. Monitor for rise in flue gas temperature
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4. Repair (replace) boiler insulation
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4. Periodic inspection of boiler insulation condition.
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5. Insulate feedwater tank – cover tank
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5. Check possible feedwater temperature losses
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6. Insulate condensate return lines
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6. Check possible heat loss from condensate return lines.
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7. Optimise quality of make-up water and feedwater
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7. Monitor quality of make-up water and feedwater: hardness, acidity, O2.
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8. Minimise blowdown
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8a. Monitor concentration of dissolved solids in boiler water.
8b. Improve blowdown controls
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9. Maintain nozzles, grates, fuel supply pressure/temperature at manufacturers’ specifications
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9a. Ensure specifications are available and in use.
9b. Regular check and resetting/maintenance.
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10. Maximise combustion air temperature
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10. Draw air from highest point in boilerhouse.
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11. Reduce steam pressure where it exceed system/process requirements.
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11. Check system/process needs; adjust controls.
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12. Use duct for intake of warmer combustion air
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12. Install duct from combustion air intake to higher parts of room.
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13. Install an automated gas leakage detector.
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14. Repair leaks in steam pipework.
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Higher cost / longer term opportunities
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Energy Saving Opportunity
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Action to Check
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1. For rapidly varying demand, convert one or more boilers to live accumulator (buffer tank).
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1. Monitor/evaluate demand change patterns.
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2. Alter controls to “High-Low-Off” or “modulating-Low-Off”
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2. Monitor/evaluate demand change patterns.
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3. Install flash steam heat recovery
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3. Consider in large capacity situations with high (continuous/frequent) blowdown.
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4. Improve combustion controls.
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4a. Provide adequate heat input to meet demand.
4b. Minimise fuel/pollution.
4c. Protect personnel/equipment.
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5. Waste heat recovery
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5a. Economiser
5b. Air heater (recuperator)?
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6. Install boiler blowdown heat recovery.
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6. Consider in large capacity situations with high (continuous/frequent) blowdown.
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7. Use process integration
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7. Couple process units that have significantly different heat requirements (i.e. low-pressure
steam leaving a high-pressure steam consuming production process can be used for a process requiring
low-pressure steam).
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Low-cost / short term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
|
Action to Check
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1. Repair/replace faulty insulation
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1. Pipework insulation – especially around valves.
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2. Repair inefficient steam traps/drains. valve spindles etc.
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2. Regular checks for leaks throughout the system.
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3. Insert valves to isolate “periodic-use” items in system.
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3. Check system for periodic (e.g. seasonal, nightly) items (e.g. space heaters).
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4. Remove/isolate “dead-legs” and redundant Pipework.
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4. Check for dead-legs and redundant piping.
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Higher cost / longer term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
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Action to Check
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1. Replace steam traps/drains with more efficient designs.
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1. Monitor efficiency of, and heat losses from existing traps.
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2. Replace or increase insulation
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2. Check existing insulation; estimate heat losses in system.
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3. Maximise condensate returns.
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3. Measure “discarded” heat from condensate.
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4. Redesign system to minimise pipe runs.
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5. Generation pressure reduction.
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Energy Saving Opportunity
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1. Plant insulation
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2.Local burner efficiency
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3. Maximise heat transfer rate
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4. Improve controls (e.g. thermostats)
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5. Consider alternative energy source
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6. Ensure plant at high load factor
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7. Eliminate uneconomic “hot standby” periods
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8. Recycle waste heat to process
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8. Recover heat, for use elsewhere
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9. Train all staff to operate manual controls and to watch for energy saving opportunities.
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Low-cost / short term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
|
1. Use heat only when area is occupied
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2. Set thermostats to minimum for comfort
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3. Minimise loss of hot air
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4. Clean and effective heaters
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5. Maintain pipe insulation in unheated areas
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6. Check condensate traps
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7. Vent air from hot water systems
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8. Time switches
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9. Manual controls where appropriate
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Higher cost / longer term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
|
1. Fit a small (jockey) compressor to meet off-peak demand.
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2. Duct air intake to ensure coolest possible.
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3. Fit air flow and kWh meters to monitor power and air use.
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4. Install modern controls on multi-compressor installations.
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5. Fit a standard heat recovery unit.
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6. Air pre-cooling.
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7. If some users are using low pressure air (2.5 – 3 bar), install two separate systems.
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8. Use frequency control for compressor.
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9. Use an individual compressed air supply for special applications.
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10. Replace pneumatic tools be electrical tools
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Low-cost / short term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
|
1. Switch off lights, fans, pumps. etc., when not required.
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2. Repair damaged insulation/seals.
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3. Check for refrigerant contamination.
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4. Check for scaling on condenser and evaporator surfaces.
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5. (Multi-compressor systems); set controls to activate minimum number of compressors.
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6. Monitor timing and duration of defrost cycles. Defrost on demand rather than at fixed intervals.
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7. Use load rescheduling (e.g. cool at night) where maximum-demand tariffs are in operation.
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8. Minimise cooling space by installing removable plastic screens or panels or by filling cooling space with polystyrene foam blocks
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9. Switch off evaporator fans when compressor is off
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10. Regulate condenser pressure (and therefore temperature)
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11. Delayed start-up of compressors. Initially, only start-up of ventilation.
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12. Increase the evaporation temperature.
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Higher cost / longer term opportunities
|
Energy Saving Opportunity
|
1. Install kWh meters and instrumentation to monitor equipment and cold room.
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2. Install an energy management system which analyses operation of the whole refrigeration system.
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3. Use effective insulation and sealing.
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4. Install efficient electronic expansion valves. Avoid “head pressure control” where possible.
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5. Recovery of waste heat at the condenser
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6. Automatic bleeding of refrigerant to remove any penetrated air
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7. Install frequency control (i.e. VRF) on chiller compressor.
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8. Install high efficiency or 2-rev electromotor on evaporation fan
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9. Build a cooled front space for refrigeration units.
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10. Use hot refrigerant gas from the compressor for the initial stages of the defrosting cycle.
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11. Use excess heat from other production processes for the production of cooling using adsorption/absorption cooling.
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Energy Saving Opportunity
|
1. Use the most efficient lamps consistent with required illumination levels and colour rendering.
|
2. Use the light output from lamps efficiently.
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3. Maintain lamps and fixtures clear of light-blocking dust and dirt.
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4. Switch off lights where lighting is not needed.
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5. Consider automatic control of lighting (time clocks and/or photo cells).
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6. Make the best use of daylight.
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7. Avoid the absorption of light by the surroundings (light-coloured wall, ceilings, and floors).
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8. Replace lamps which have exceeded their rated life.
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9. Use “switch-off” and “save-it” stickers as a tool of good housekeeping.
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10. Consider new technologies in order to reduce installation cost, such as infrared switching.
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12. Use presence detection switches
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13. Use a lighting system that is continuously variable (e.g. high-frequency fluorescent lighting).
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