Since there are no currently active contests, we have switched Climate CoLab to read-only mode.
Learn more at https://climatecolab.org/page/readonly.
Skip navigation
Share via:

Pitch

Industrial plants waste tons of water that is still hot and has a lot of energy left in it. My idea converts that waste heat to electricity.


Description

Summary

Many power plants and factories use water for cooling plant equipment such as air compressors, turbine generator lube oil coolers, hydrogen coolers, stator oil coolers, hydraulic oil couplings,fuel oil heaters and other various plant equipment. Power plants have boiler blow downs that send hot water to a flash tank and all that heat is wasted. One such blow down is used for water chemistry all the time if silica is present in the boiler water . This is a 1 inch line under 2500 psi and about 800 degrees F. and it goes to a flash tank then to a drain and a vent line out the top of the flash tank . Sometimes they have to blow down 24 hours. Also Auxilliary steam that has been used in various locations in the plant goes to a heat exchanger inside a condensate recovery tank to condense that steam back to water again.. All steam traps from the plant can go to the recovery tank also to heat the water in the tank with steam coils before going back to the condenser. This would help keep exhaust hood temperatures down on the low pressure turbine.My idea is to collect all that hot water in a holding tank and use it to boil the freon or ammonia in the evaporator and run a closed loop Rankine Cycle turbine to produce electricity like in the below diagram. Cold water 50 to 60 degrees F. from a well or deep lake or deep ocean water can be used as the condensing medium for the condenser. The greater the temperature/pressure differential across the turbine is the more electricity can be made.

http://www.lockheedmartin.com/us/100years/stories/otec.html


Category of the action

Reducing emissions from waste management


What actions do you propose?

Making good use of waste heat by producing electrical power from it would help the plants heat rate and drive down fuel consumption and lower emissions for the plant. This is an overall win for the environment. The governments "Climate Action Plan" would help fund the idea: http://www.whitehouse.gov/climate-change


Who will take these actions?

Businesses should jump at this for fuel savings. Any extra power made could be sold thus making some industries Independent Power Producers... All Power Plants or other industries that use burn fossil fuels can use this technology today to recover some of the waste heat in their plants. The governments "Climate Action Plan" would help fund the idea: http://www.whitehouse.gov/climate-change


Where will these actions be taken?

These actions could be performed world wide.


What are other key benefits?

I study the idea daily and have found the idea can reverse many of the ill effects of climate change that fossil fuels are bringing us today such as Co2. SOX, NOX, particulate matter, smog, higher sea levels, higher sea surface temperatures, red tide,hypoxic oceans, lower PH levels in our oceans, coral bleaching, loss of Northern summertime arctic ice, Loss of the Antarctic Ice shelf, loss of albedo, skin cancer,Loss of Methane Hydrates, Melt of Arctic Tundra, lung cancer, war, heart attacks, stroke, asthma, loss of polar bears, sea lions, narwhals, walrus, krill, shrimp, rain forest's, soil moisture, more desertification and prevents fracking. etc. etc. etc.


How much will emissions be reduced or sequestered vs. business as usual levels?

 This idea may get another 8 to10 MWs from plant per hour. Emissions would be reduced due to heat rate being lowered. The technology is already here. No action would mean heat rate stays the same.


What are the proposal’s costs?

Perhaps a few million dollars per site to get 8 to 10 MWs.


Time line

Perhaps 1-5 years per site once a test facility has been built..Government can offer grant monies to get the project rolling.. I estimate 8 to 10 MW's per hour can be saved using this technology in plant cooling water discharge as it's discharge temperature is near 110 degrees F which is much hotter than ocean or lake temperature on the inlet of the heat exchanger during summer and winter months.... I can't imagine this technology costing more than a few million dollars per site the technology and know how is already here all we have to do is use the transferable  OTEC technology to our favor...


Related proposals

Only 2 on my proposal list don't use this technology.

Click on proposal list here: https://www.climatecolab.org/web/guest/member/-/member/userId/1005099


References

This technology has not been used in this way yet..