Waste-Heat Recovery in Batch Processs Using Heat Storage

The waste-heat recovery in batch processes has been studied using the pinch-point method. The aim of the work has been to investigate theoretical and practical approaches to the design of heat-exchanger networks, including heat storage, for waste-heat recovery in batch processes. The study is limited to the incorporation of energy-storage systems based on fixed-temperature variable-mass stores. The background for preferring this to the alternatives (variable-temperature fixed-mass and constant-mass constant-temperature (latent-heat) stores) is given. It is shown that the maximum energy-saving targets as calculated by the pinch-point method (time average model, TAM) can be achieved by locating energy stores at either end of each process stream. This theoretically large number of heat-storage tanks (twice the number of process streams) can be reduced to just a few tanks. A simple procedure for determining a number of heat-storage tanks sufficient to achieve the maximum energy-saving targets as calculated by the pinch-point method is described. This procedure relies on combinatorial considerations, and could therefore be labeled the “combinatorial method” for incorporation of heat storage in heat-exchanger networks. Qualitative arguments justifying the procedure are presented. For simple systems, waste-heat recovery systems with only three heat-storage temperatures (a hot storage, a cold storage, and a heat store at the pinch temperature) often can achieve the maximum energy-saving targets. Through case studies, six of which are presented, it is found that a theoretically large number of heat-storage tanks (twice the number of process streams) can be reduced to just a few tanks. The description of these six cases is intended to be sufficiently detailed to serve as benchmark cases for development of alternative methods.