Waste energy recovery and energy efficiency improvement in China’s iron and steel industry

Waste energy recovery and utilization presents a crucial opportunity in primary energy reduction and energy efficiency improvement for the global iron and steel industry. However, lack of comprehensive and practical methodology, the exact quantity of waste energy is often poorly quantified. This paper develops an innovative techno-economic model to quantify this opportunity that links theoretical, technical, and economic potential with the characteristics of waste energy resources and waste recycling technologies. Various forms of waste energy, such as sensible heat, pressure energy, and chemical energy, were examined. In addition, four scenarios were established to evaluate future energy saving potential and energy consumption reduction under the synergistic effect of technology promotion and structure adjustment. Findings show that the proportion of practical potential is less than 20% when considering the technical implementation rate for the average industry value. The selected 35 energy-saving technologies contribute to 3.08GJ/t crude steel of cumulative energy savings, and technology implementation plays a significant role in energy consumption reduction. A sensitivity analysis indicates that energy price and discount rate are the most sensitive factors.

[1]  Wenying Chen,et al.  Quantify the energy and environmental benefits of implementing energy-efficiency measures in China’s iron and steel production , 2015 .

[2]  Mustafa Inalli,et al.  Technoeconomic appraisal of a ground source heat pump system for a heating season in eastern Turkey , 2006 .

[3]  Tengfang Xu,et al.  A bottom-up model to estimate the energy efficiency improvement and CO2 emission reduction potentials in the Chinese iron and steel industry , 2013 .

[4]  Megan Jobson,et al.  Evaluating the potential of process sites for waste heat recovery , 2016 .

[5]  Dirk Uwe Sauer,et al.  Optimization of self-consumption and techno-economic analysis of PV-battery systems in commercial applications , 2016 .

[6]  Li Zhang,et al.  Estimates of the potential for energy conservation in the Chinese steel industry , 2011 .

[7]  Mehmet Esen,et al.  Experimental evaluation of using various renewable energy sources for heating a greenhouse , 2013 .

[8]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Energy efficiency and carbon dioxide emissions reduction opportunities in the US iron and steel sector , 2001 .

[9]  Sarah Broberg Viklund,et al.  Technologies for utilization of industrial excess heat: Potentials for energy recovery and CO2 emission reduction , 2014 .

[10]  Cheng Xu,et al.  Techno-economic analysis and optimization of the heat recovery of utility boiler flue gas , 2013 .

[11]  Petra Winzer,et al.  Techno-economic evaluation of innovative steel production technologies , 2014 .

[12]  Fumitaka Tsukihashi,et al.  Exergy Analysis of Steel Production Processes , 2002 .

[13]  Tengfang Xu,et al.  Assessment of energy efficiency improvement and CO2 emission reduction potentials in India's cement and iron & steel industries , 2014 .

[14]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Energy Intensity Development of the German Iron and Steel Industry between 1991 and 2007 , 2012 .

[15]  Zhou Wei,et al.  Optimal design and techno-economic analysis of a hybrid solar–wind power generation system , 2009 .

[16]  Zongguo Wen,et al.  Estimates of the potential for energy conservation and CO2 emissions mitigation based on Asian-Pacific Integrated Model (AIM): the case of the iron and steel industry in China , 2014 .

[17]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Productivity benefits of industrial energy efficiency measures , 2003 .

[18]  Ajay Gambhir,et al.  A review of the technologies, economics and policy instruments for decarbonising energy-intensive manufacturing industries , 2014 .

[19]  Truong Xuan Do,et al.  Techno-economic analysis of power plant via circulating fluidized-bed gasification from woodchips , 2014 .

[20]  Lin Ke,et al.  Study on Grade Recovery and Cascade Utilization of Waste Heat From Sintering-Cooling Process , 2011 .

[21]  Qi Zhang,et al.  Capturing the invisible resource: Analysis of waste heat potential in Chinese industry , 2016 .

[22]  Huanbin Liu,et al.  Energy conservation and CO2 mitigation potentials in the Chinese pulp and paper industry , 2017 .

[23]  Magnus Karlsson,et al.  Industrial excess heat use: Systems analysis and CO2 emissions reduction , 2015 .

[24]  Zafer Utlu,et al.  Investigation of the potential for heat recovery at low, medium, and high stages in the Turkish industrial sector (TIS): An application , 2015 .

[25]  Zhu Wei-wei,et al.  Difficulties for the development and principles for the promotion of IoT industry in the new era——an interpretation of “The 12th Five-Year Plan for the Development of IoT Industry” by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology , 2012 .

[26]  Rosemary Norman,et al.  Low grade thermal energy sources and uses from the process industry in the UK , 2012 .

[27]  Lei Zhu,et al.  Cost of energy saving and CO2 emissions reduction in China’s iron and steel sector , 2014 .

[28]  Daren E. Daugaard,et al.  Techno-Economic Analysis of Biomass Fast Pyrolysis to Transportation Fuels , 2010 .

[29]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Industrial waste heat recovery technologies: An economic analysis of heat transformation technologies , 2015 .

[30]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Mapping and discussing Industrial Waste Heat (IWH) potentials for different countries , 2015 .

[31]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Co-benefits of energy efficiency improvement and air pollution abatement in the Chinese iron and steel industry , 2014 .

[32]  Christoph Menke,et al.  The use of conservation supply curves in energy policy and economic analysis: The case study of Thai cement industry , 2010 .

[33]  José Antonio Moya,et al.  The potential for improvements in energy efficiency and CO2 emissions in the EU27 iron and steel industry under different payback periods , 2013 .

[34]  Chuan Wang,et al.  Techno-economic Analysis of Low Temperature Waste Heat Recovery and Utilization at an Integrated Steel Plant in Sweden , 2014 .

[35]  Xiang Yin,et al.  A bottom-up analysis of China’s iron and steel industrial energy consumption and CO2 emissions , 2014 .

[36]  Jining Chen,et al.  Contributing to differentiated technology policy-making on the promotion of energy efficiency technologies in heavy industrial sector: a case study of China , 2016 .

[37]  Geoffrey P. Hammond,et al.  Energy efficiency potentials: contrasting thermodynamic, technical and economic limits for organic Rankine cycles within UK industry , 2016 .

[38]  Lu Zhongwu,et al.  Recovery of Residual-Heat Integrated Steelworks , 2007 .

[39]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Diffusion of energy efficient technologies in the German steel industry and their impact on energy consumption , 2014 .

[40]  Alan Meier,et al.  Supply Curves of Conserved Energy , 1982 .

[41]  E. Masanet,et al.  Energy Efficiency Improvement and Cost Saving Opportunities for the U.S. Iron and Steel Industry An ENERGY STAR(R) Guide for Energy and Plant Managers , 2011 .

[42]  Lynn Price,et al.  A Comparison of Iron and Steel Production Energy Use and Energy Intensity in China and the U.S. , 2014 .

[43]  Lingen Chen,et al.  Thermodynamic optimization opportunities for the recovery and utilization of residual energy and heat in China's iron and steel industry: A case study , 2015 .

[44]  Bo Chen,et al.  Investigation of the residual heat recovery and carbon emission mitigation potential in a Chinese steelmaking plant: A hybrid material/energy flow analysis case study , 2013 .

[45]  Ali Hasanbeigi,et al.  Moving beyond equipment and to systems optimization: techno-economic analysis of energy efficiency potentials in industrial steam systems in China , 2016 .

[46]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Energy efficiency in the German pulp and paper industry – A model-based assessment of saving potentials , 2012 .

[47]  Florens Flues,et al.  An analysis of the economic determinants of energy efficiency in the European iron and steel industry , 2015 .

[48]  J. Norman,et al.  Industrial Energy Use and Improvement Potential , 2013 .

[49]  Ryan Davis,et al.  Techno-economic analysis of autotrophic microalgae for fuel production , 2011 .

[50]  Luisa F. Cabeza,et al.  Methods to estimate the industrial waste heat potential of regions – A categorization and literature review , 2014 .