The chemical industry is Germany’s largest consumer of process heat. Across all industries, 80% of final energy consumption for process heat still comes from fossil energy sources, and almost a quarter of German CO2 emissions are produced here.
There is still room for improvement in terms of energy output: 200 TWh of waste heat goes up the chimneys of German industry unused every year, according to calculations by the German Association of Energy Storage Systems (BVES).
The topic of circular economy is the keyword of the hour in the chemical industry because products from the chemical industry can be found in almost every area of daily life.
Producing all products with net zero emissions, whether B2C or B2B, will determine the competitiveness of the chemical industry in the future. This is because there is an increasing need along the entire supply chain to act in a demonstrably sustainable manner and to procure climate-neutral primary products.
Thermal storage solutions
It is also clear that the target triangle of the energy transition will not be restored by waiting – security of supply, sustainability and competitiveness of the industrial energy supply will only be achieved through active action in politics and business. And solution-oriented action is needed above all where dependence on fossil energies is particularly high: in process heat.
In food production, this is particularly important; after all, consistent product quality along the process and supply chains can only be ensured by a stable energy supply. Downtimes are not an option.
On the other hand, end customers’ demand for organic and sustainable products is increasing.
In the B2C business, manufacturers are therefore confronted with an even stronger expectation to produce CO2-free products in order to become more sustainable and ultimately remain competitive.
Where process heat has to be provided in the form of steam, thermal storage units are rather the means of choice. The storage units enable the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energies.
Steam, which was previously generated using fossil fuels, is replaced by green electricity, which is fed into the storage unit as heat and released into the processes as steam.
In this electrification process, the energy efficiency is over 95% – from the high-voltage electricity to the process steam that is delivered to the end user.
Playing an active role in energy security
Acting now means facing the crises actively instead of passively. Thermal storage systems can play a central role in securing the industrial heat supply in the current energy crisis and at the same time become a core component of climate-neutral production processes.
They are sustainable and economical at the same time, quickly implemented, and scalable. This makes thermal storage systems indispensable building blocks for the energy sovereignty of food and packaging production and the chemical industry.
Take a look at the energy sources from which your plants produce heat or steam today. Coal? Natural gas? Then take thermal energy storage to your next management meeting to think about how to replace your fossil-fuel-based heat and steam generation with renewable power and a thermal storage solution.
This is a proposal that combines decarbonisation, the affordability of energy, and, these days, above all, energy security, i.e. independence from fossil fuels, as the three essential goals of the industrial energy transition.
For more information on Thermal Storage solutions, visit: www.energy-nest.com
