Low-grade heat utilisation to obtain economically viable and environmentally sustainable automotive manufacturing

技术背景：博士研究生将研究低等级热源的可能利用，例如由GEICO TAIKISHA设计的日产英国新汽车油漆车间的剩余低等级热量，该车间将于2017年3月开业。本研究的目的是引入一个框架，以减轻环境特征和改善最终用途能源需求。能源效率迅速成为重中之重，因为工业运营中的高能耗造成了大量的二氧化碳排放，从而导致了气候变化。汽车制造工厂有很大的能源消耗，以喷漆车间为例，这是一个特别重要的原因。该框架的应用将确定改善能源使用的机会，以便减少业务成本和温室气体排放。在工业中，大量的能源通常被泵、压缩机、锅炉、原动机、烤箱、冷却器、烘干机、过程加热器、过程冷却器、通风设备等设备所使用。每一种操作过程中的热能损失是不可避免的，因此以操作单元多为特点的制造业，必然存在较大的热能损失来源。因此，随着能源成本的提高和能源使用合理化的重要性的增加，热能管理很可能在未来成为一个日益重要的问题。减少终端能源需求将有助于日产实现可持续发展的过程，并在成本竞争力和环境目标方面取得重要成果。这可以通过回收低品位热量（温度<260℃）来实现，这些热量如果不被捕获和利用，就会大部分释放到大气中，从而造成能源和资源损失，错失提高能效的机会。将评估创新技术回收这种能源的能力及其利用范围。项目概述：为了识别和估计所有可能的低品位热源并加以利用，首先需要评估理论上可以从工业过程中回收多少热量。这个评估将通过捏紧和火用分析来完成。夹点分析是一种通过计算热力学上可行的能量目标，并通过优化热回收系统、能源供应方法和过程操作条件来实现这些目标，从而最大限度地减少过程能耗的方法。同时，火用分析结果有助于确定给定低等级热源的潜在有用性，并确定可以获得的最大机械功。在对现有的低品位热源进行特征描述后，将对回收和利用的最合适的创新技术解决方案进行评估，以评估所获得的潜在最终使用能源减少。将对这些解决方案进行经济分析，以探索对资本和运营成本的影响，以确定投资回收期和商业可行性。项目成果：详细的技术经济报告，分析利用低品位热源减少制造能源需求的创新解决方案。预计在《应用能源》、《应用热工程》等重要期刊上发表4篇以上高影响力论文。此外，在可持续能源技术、热动力循环等世界领先会议上发表3次演讲。

Technical background: The PhD studentship will investigate possible utilisation of low-grade heat sources, for example surplus low grade heat from the new automotive paint shop of NISSAN UK being designed by GEICO TAIKISHA and which will be opened in March 2017. The objective of the research is to introduce a framework to ease the environmental characterization and improvement in end use energy demand. Energy efficiency has quickly become a top priority because of the high energy use in industrial operations, which are responsible for significant CO2 emissions and thus, climatic changes. An automotive manufacturing plant has very large energy use and the painting shop example is particularly major responsible for this. The application of the framework will identify opportunities for improving energy use in order to achieve a reduction in operating costs and greenhouse gas emissions. In industry, a significant amount of energy is commonly used by equipment such as pumps, compressors, boilers, prime movers, ovens, chillers, dryers, process heaters, process coolers, ventilation equipment, etc. Thermal energy loss in each operation cannot be avoided and therefore manufacturing industry, characterised by a large number of operation units, has an inevitable large source of thermal energy loss. Hence, with higher energy cost and the increased importance of rationalising energy use, thermal energy management is likely to become an increasingly fundamental issue in the future. Decreasing the amount of end-use energy demand would help NISSAN to achieve sustainable processes with subsequent important results in terms of cost competitiveness and making progress toward environmental goals. This can be achieved by recovering low-grade heat (T<260 C), which if not captured and used, is mostly released into the atmosphere, thus giving rise to energy and resource losses and missing an energy efficiency opportunity. Innovative technologies will be assessed for their ability to recovery this energy and the scope of their utilisation. Project summary: In order to identify and estimate all the possible low-grade heat sources and to utilise them, it is firstly required to evaluate how much heat can be theoretically recovered from the industrial processes. This evaluation will be done through a pinch and exergy analysis. Pinch analysis is a methodology for minimising the energy consumption of processes by calculating thermodynamically feasible energy targets and achieving them by optimising heat recovery systems, energy supply methods and process operating conditions. At the same time, exergy analysis results to aid in determining the potential usefulness of a given low-grade heat source and determine the maximum amount of mechanical work which can be obtained. After the characterisation of available low grade heat sources, the most appropriate innovative technical solution for recovery and utilisation will be evaluated in order to assess the potential end use energy reduction obtained. An economic analysis of the solutions will be conducted to explore the impact on capital and operational costs to determine payback periods and commercial viability. Project outcomes: Detail techno-economic reports analysing innovative solutions to utilise low grade heat sources to reduce manufacturing energy demand. It is expected that at least 4 high impact publications in leading journals such as Applied Energy and Applied Thermal Engineering. In addition, 3 presentations at world leading conferences such as Sustainable Energy Technology, and Heat Powered Cycles.