ABOUT THE PROJECT

Energy-intensive industries (EIIs) are the main emitters of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) as they drive their industrial processes due to their high primary energy use. In EIIs EIIs generate large amounts of waste heat, and low-temperature waste heat in particular is released unused into the environment. released into the environment. The waste heat potential of EIIs in Europe is more than 14,000 MW with a usable energy potential of 2,800 MW.

The new technology, developed under the LIFE GreenPower project, will result in significant savings in primary energy and CO2 emissions from the EII and eliminate the use of fluorinated gases.

Green Power technology will thus contribute to the growth of the waste heat recovery market in Europe by demonstrating how low grade unused waste heat can be efficiently converted into a required form of energy.

The technology will be applicable to all EIIs and transferable to other sectors that generate low-grade waste heat. GreenPower operates without harmful working media and fluids compared to the best available techniques using organic Rankine cycles or heat pumps.

• Integration and testing of energy conversion technology on a pilot scale in the glass industry
• Show case for broad market acceptance
• Validation of the estimated energy savings potential in compressed air generation for the glass manufacturing process.
• Best Available Technology (BAT)

From a heat source, the thermal input takes place via a heat exchanger into the GreenPower plant. The core of such a system is an energy converter. The energy converter is a component in which a enclosed working medium (gas) undergoes a temperature increase due to heat input. As a result pressure within the gas increases. The gas expands against a power converting unit and supplies mechanical energy. The thermodynamic system is characterized by a periodically recurring transformation (cyclic process) from thermal to mechanical energy within a closed plant system. A GreenPower plant is almost emission-free during operation. It does not cause air pollution, emits no CO2, uses no harmful gases, and is virtually silent. The realization of power classes between 1 kW up to several 100kW is possible.