Energy saving solutions for industrial furnaces and kilns

Poor energy efficiency within industrial furnaces usually impacts companies' production costs, since more energy consumption is required to achieve the desired temperature. This, in turn, has a tangible impact on their carbon emission footprint.

According to the International Energy Agency, the industrial sector is one of the main culprits of global energy consumption. As such, industrial furnaces tend to be the pieces of equipment that consume the most.

In this article, we will share a series of solutions you can implement to improve energy efficiency, reduce production costs, and be socially and environmentally responsible.

Factors that may be affecting your energy efficiency

Some elements that may be harming your energy efficiency are:

• Heat losses in the furnace process

These may be due to structural damage to the insulation or incorrect gas flow distribution inside the furnace.

• Inefficient combustion processes

Probably due to inadequate or excessive air/fuel ratios or poor mixture caused by internal damage to the burner.

Tips to reduce fuel use in your furnaces

Some tips that can help you improve furnace energy savings are:

1. Monitor the temperature on the cold side of the furnace, carefully checking that there are no hot spots.
2. Periodically analyze the composition of the furnace combustion gases, ensuring you are maintaining the expected levels of oxygen and CO.
3. Periodically check that the combustion air and fuel flows are in a stoichiometric ratio.
4. Check at least twice a year that the burners are in good condition and show no damage.
5. Perform periodic maintenance on the combustion system.
6. Avoid infiltration of cold air into the furnace that could affect the efficiency of the process.
7. Keep the temperature control loops tuned. If there is no temperature control loop, we recommend integrating one.
8. Periodically monitor consumption, either manually or automatically.

Are you looking for support to carry out any of this furnace monitoring? Contact us.

Fig. 1  Industrial furnace flow check

Systems to improve energy efficiency in your furnaces

Today, some systems that can significantly assist in reducing energy consumption can be implemented in your furnaces, thus preventing losses and/or eliminating inefficient processes. Here are some of the ones we handle at NUTEC Bickley:

• Energy recovery systems

These can be added to your furnaces to recover the heat from the flue gases so that they can be used again, heating the combustion air. Some options for these systems are self-recuperative burners and regenerative burners.

• Flue gas measurement systems

These guarantee that your furnaces always have the correct proportion of air and gas in their system. With them, you can continuously monitor the status and thus make decisions based on these data to then adjust any out-of-proportion levels.

Preventive maintenance services

Besides the tips and systems for energy saving already mentioned, at NUTEC Bickley, we offer preventive maintenance services to save energy, reduce costs, prevent failures in your industrial furnaces, improve their operation, and more.

Some of these are:

• Audit and diagnosis service

The furnace input and output variables are measured in order to indicate current efficiency levels and to identify possible areas for improvement.

• Burner calibration service

The air/fuel ratio is checked to ensure burners operate in the correct range.

In Conclusion

In summary, if you consider implementing any of the tips and systems presented here, you can improve energy efficiency in your industrial furnaces and significantly reduce your operating costs.

If you want to learn more about any of the services and solutions mentioned in this article, contact one of our expert advisors. We will gladly guide you to determine the best option for your furnaces.

Resources: International Energy Agency