Il potenziale dell'eliminazione delle torce ORC

The Reality of Flaring.

The flaring of methane is commonplace at many landfills, biogas and wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), and oil and gas well sites across the globe. Industries routinely flare to dispose of unwanted gases and to prevent pressure build up. Not only are these flares a waste of valuable energy and an unsightly reminder of our impact on the planet, but have grown to be a topic of concern as the world strives for a carbon-neutral future. Flares are currently responsible for 2% of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions – which means if flaring were to be represented as a country, that country would be the 5^th largest gas consumer in the world after the US, Russia, China, and Iran.

By visiting SkyTruth, one can observe global natural gas flaring via satellite. However, this satellite will only pick up the larger concentrations of gas flaring, indicating there are many more smaller sites also flaring. With that in perspective, the burning of this gas is not only a significant contributor to greenhouse gases (GHGs), but an immense waste of a valuable resource as well. Globally, the emissions from flared gas equate to an estimated 280 million metric tons of CO2 a year. To put things further into perspective, the value of gas flared in New Mexico alone in 2019 was $10 million.

With the data revealing the scale of the issue, it is easy to understand why this practice has come under increasing scrutiny with regulatory agencies seeking to eliminate or reduce flaring through the imposing of fines and stricter air quality standards. Some US states such as Alaska, Colorado, and New Mexico have already banned the practice of routine flaring. States such as Pennsylvania and Texas are close in pursuit, eager to appease industry regulators and environmental lobbyist. In the oil and gas industry, being ahead of the curve will be the key to longevity.

Take BP for example. Facing increasing pressure from regulators, investors, and buyers of natural gas to reduce their carbon footprint, BP pledged to spend $1.3 billion to build a network of pipes and other infrastructure to capture natural gas in their Texas and New Mexico oil fields that will effectively eliminate natural gas flaring at those locations by 2025. While this news is excellent, it is a drop in the bucket and not feasible for many locations currently flaring natural gas. Since numerous industries flare – such as landfills, wastewater treatment plants, oil and gas wells, and even biogas plants – a solution needs to be both practical and profitable to see widespread integration.

There are two main approaches to flare elimination. The first approach is to burn the excess gas in an engine to generate power. This route requires the installation of biogas cleanup and storage along with an engine genset. The cost of this equipment can easily be in excess of $1 million USD and engines running off biogas routinely face issues with siloxane buildup. Siloxane buildup requires expensive maintenance leading to increased downtime (lost revenue and more flaring) or even a complete engine replacement.

Another approach is to burn the excess gas in a boiler. Not only is this approach far less extensive and expensive, but modern biogas boilers are designed to be less susceptible to siloxane buildup and damage. Since most all biogas and wastewater treatment plants have biogas or natural gas boilers installed, this method is simple and more cost-effective than the one mentioned above. In other instances, such as well site applications where a boiler will need to be installed, the capital costs are still far less than the alternative. The only dilemma with this approach is that those who cannot make use of the thermal energy provided by the biogas boiler are simply wasting energy, which leads us to a simple solution…

ORC Flare Elimination

An easily adaptable solution is an Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) waste heat recovery system integrated with a biogas boiler. All we need to know about an ORC is that it exploits the temperature difference between hot and cold water to generate electricity. This means converting heat into power, using hot water as a medium to transfer the thermal energy. The process for ORC flare elimination is simple.

// Excess gas is routed to a boiler which heats water for the ORC.

// The water is then routed through the ORC, which is a closed-loop system, and generates electricity.

// By using excess gas to fuel a boiler, the flare is eliminated.

// By routing more gas to the boiler, water production can be increased and ORC output maximized.

An appropriate ORC flare elimination system must be able to handle fluctuations due to the inconsistent supply of thermal energy. With turbine systems incapable of reliably operating under those conditions, the only ORC technology that makes sense are those utilizing screw expanders. This is due to their comparatively better turndown ratios and transient operation capabilities. An example of this technology is ElectraTherm’s Generatore Power+. In a previous demonstration in collaboration with the Department of Energy Research Partnership to Secure Energy for America (REPSEA), Centro di ricerca avanzata di Houston (HARC), Energia verde della Costa del Golfo, and HESS at a North Dakota oil well, ElectraTherm reduced carbon monoxide emissions by 98%, nitrogen oxide by 48%, and VOCs by 93% while generating emission-free electricity.

ElectraTherm has an upcoming flare elimination application at a wastewater treatment plant in New York which, once completed, will be the first ORC application of its kind. The successful demonstration of ORC technology at a wastewater treatment plant will open up opportunities across municipalities, further advancing waste heat recovery technology in the marketplace.

 

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Informazioni su ElectraTherm

ElectraTherm del Gruppo BITZER fornisce soluzioni di classe mondiale per il recupero del calore di scarto utilizzando il Ciclo Rankine Organico insieme a tecnologie proprietarie per convertire il calore a bassa temperatura in energia pulita. Le soluzioni semplici ed efficaci di ElectraTherm generano elettricità pulita, aumentano l'efficienza, riducono i costi energetici e diminuiscono le emissioni, senza alcun consumo aggiuntivo di carburante. Avendo spedito oltre 100 unità ORC in più di 13 Paesi, con oltre 2.000.000 di ore di funzionamento, ElectraTherm è leader mondiale nel recupero del calore di scarto su piccola scala.

Il vantaggio combinato dell'ingegneria di ElectraTherm e il valore del supporto di BITZER, il più grande produttore indipendente di compressori per la refrigerazione al mondo, che vanta quasi 3.500 dipendenti in tutto il mondo e un fatturato medio annuo di circa 1 miliardo di euro, consente al team di ElectraTherm di continuare a sviluppare una tecnologia ORC all'avanguardia nel settore, che fa bene sia al business che al pianeta.

ElectraTherm Generatore Power+ è una soluzione heat to power, che converte il calore di scarto in elettricità pulita e calore utilizzabile. Il Raffreddatore attivo è una soluzione di raffreddamento a energia zero, che utilizza lo stesso processo ORC per fornire un raffreddamento autoalimentato e al contempo generare elettricità. Entrambe le soluzioni di ElectraTherm riducono le emissioni e i costi energetici, fornendo al contempo un'alimentazione/raffreddamento di base. Sfruttare il calore residuo non è solo redditizio, ma anche pratico. Permette alle aziende di beneficiare di un'economia più circolare e di raggiungere gli obiettivi di sostenibilità.