Smartrec Knowledge Base (KB) tool estimates the environmental and cost-benefit of a waste heat recovery (WHR) application utilising intermittent waste heat source of energy-intensive industries. This tool has been developed during the implementation of “Smartrec”, an EU project funded under the main pillar “Societal Challenges” of “Horizon 2020 Work Programme 2016-2017”.
Smartrec technology concept relies on the heat pipe heat exchanger to recover heat from intermittent exhaust flue gas and on thermal energy storage based on dual-media thermocline (DMT) to counteract the intermittent nature of heat source and thereby to deliver the constant thermal load. Although there are huge potential and numerous benefits of WHR, there are some barriers that impact the economy and effectiveness of heat recovery equipment and impede its wider adoption. Smartrec KB tool has been designed and developed to address those barriers of wider adoption of WHR application.
The tool will estimate the recoverable waste heat after analysing the user input regarding the intermittent waste heat source. The KB tool will offer different options of Smartrec WHR solution comprising different options of thermal storages. For each of the offered WHR solution, the tool will provide informed investment decision support on the marginal investment (on WHR technology) through evaluating different financial parameters such as Levelised cost of thermal energy (LCOEt), Payback period, Net present value (NPV), Internal rate of return (IRR), Return on investment (ROI) etc. To account for the uncertainty of different variables such as retrofitting factor, discount rate, energy price etc., the tool will perform sensitivity analysis to determine the impact of these factors on those financial parameters. The tool will also provide information regarding the emission saving opportunities created by the WHR application and the resource and energy consumed during the manufacturing and use phases of the offered WHR solution.
Youtube link: Smartrec Knowledge Base KB ToolYouTube