Ideal‐Typical Utility Infrastructure at Chemical Sites – Definition, Operation and Defossilization

The defossilization of the electricity and heat supply in the chemical industry poses a significant challenge. In particular, the intended feed‐in of volatile renewable electricity into the chemical processes may conflict with the need for a constant, secure and affordable electricity and heat supply for chemical plants. Adapted concepts for the operation of the cogeneration plant, which is located at the chemical site, play a central role. The present work defines a so‐called ideal‐typical utility infrastructure (iUI). The iUI is a means to exemplarily investigate the operational behavior of utility infrastructures and furthermore to identify defossilization options for process steam and electricity supply at chemical sites.