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Texas Industrial Water Management Forum

Process Cooling Technology Forum:

Laying the Foundation

Nov. 7, 2013

Texas Industries of the Future

Goals of Process Cooling Technology Forum

• Share information to accelerate applications – Educate end-users on the state of technologies that

provide process cooling and the trade-offs between energy and water use.

– Educate technology developers on the potential market at chemical plants and refineries and specific needs.

• Identify/prioritize action items to address barriers • Provide initial contacts for later follow-up between

end-users and technology developers

Case for Action--Economic

• Energy Use and Water Use Intersection – Cooling water is typically the most cost-effective

approach to heat rejection – Water supply restrictions can drive towards alternative

cooling methods (Fin Fans, Hybrid Systems) • Increased “sink” temperature can be less efficient

– Higher process temperatures reduced recovery – Higher refrigerant condensing higher power draw – Higher steam turbine condensing pressure higher

fuel use • Economic impact can be significant

– For nominal 5 °F rise, >$1 million/year energy cost – Diverts capital for less efficient or retrofit systems

Water Use by Texas Industries

North American Water Risk

Focus of Process Cooling Technology Forum

A robust water management strategy might involve: • Reducing water waste—operational excellence • Installing new technologies that use less water • Reusing water within the plant (with or without treatment) • Developing additional fresh water supplies • Upgrading non-conventional water resources with

additional treatment (ex: desalinization)

Estimated Water Use by Energy-Intensive Plants*

Source: Anonymous US petrochemical company *Includes refineries and ethylene plants

Estimated Water Use by Less Energy-Intensive Plants

(Polymers)

Source: Anonymous US petrochemical company

The Energy-Water Nexus in Chemical Manufacturing and Refining

• Current Practice: 67 to 92% of water used is for process cooling or steam systems

• Future: What happens if there is a decrease in water available for energy systems, resulting in: – Increase in energy use

Substitute chillers for cooling water Substitute other cooling systems for cooling

towers

– Impacts on production Decreased production due to less efficient product

recovery (not operating at optimum temperature) or Change processes to avoid energy/production

penalty

What’s on Your Mind? Technical Issues • Water reuse • Desalination • Selection of process cooling technologies • Discharge quality • Poor water supply quality during drought • Developing a detailed water balance Management Issues • Impacts on future expansions • Quantifying and communicating risk • Little advance notice before curtailments • Water is cheap until it is gone (attendees at Technology Forum, June 2013)

Technologies Presented at the Process Cooling Technology Forum

• Smarter Use of Existing Cooling Towers Optimization Principles-Phelps Engineering Advanced Dew Point Cooling Tower Fill-Gas

Technology Institute

• Hybrid Cooling Wet Surface Air Coolers-Niagara Blower Thermosyphone Cooler-Johnson Controls EVAPCO Dual Coil Cooler-Hunton Specialty

• Dry Cooling

Hudson Products Corporation

(Texas IOF makes no endorsement of any technology. Presenters were invited to educate end-users on technology performance and status.)

Breakout Group Topics

• Existing Technology and Operations • New Technologies • Risk and Management • Water Reuse and Use of

Unconventional Sources

Topic 1: Existing Technology and Operations Strategy: Sustain process reliability under water distressed

conditions through lowest cost efficiency improvements

• Barriers – Unclear economics; not seen as a near-term problem

• Possible Solutions – Identify cooling water misdistribution opportunities – Develop macro-economics for degradation of cooling

water return temperature – Evaluate addition of hybrid module systems to

existing systems • Next Step

– Compile high-level installed cost information for each technology to frame cost and performance parameters

Topic 2: New Technologies Strategy: Increase understanding of available and developing

technologies with respect to commercial readiness and impacts

• Barriers – Unclear economic; short-term contingency plans do not

address long-term problem

• Possible Solutions – Common evaluation template; champion site (gutsy end-

user) – Verify a technology’s characteristic via paper study, bench

scale test, pilot, and in field at commercial scale.

• Next Step – Compare technologies with parameters and attributes such

as energy and water impacts for new and retrofit applicability.

Topic 3: Risk and Management Strategy: Develop comparable information

on cost and performance of new technologies

• Barriers – Technologies not proven in chemical plants or refineries – Differing formats/metrics on new technologies

• Possible Solutions – Process to speed demonstration of technologies in relevant

applications; tool to allow an end-user to screen technologies for themselves.

– Develop a common evaluation template; frame the issue using multiple scenarios.

• Next Step – Compare technologies under several water restriction

scenarios for a reference plant.

Topic 4: Water Reuse and Use of Unconventional Water Sources Strategy: Increase Reuse of

Plant Wastewater

• Barriers

– Resource, capital and technology constraints – High system complexity (reuse impacts on

discharge quality and quantity) could lead to unintended adverse consequences

– Potential penalty for early action • Possible Solutions

– Look at ‘good enough’ cleanup of the water to be used in another part of the plant.

Topic 4: Water Reuse and Use of Unconventional Water Sources

Strategy: Education on New(er) Technologies and Approaches

• Barriers to Use of Unconventional Water Sources (sea water, brackish water or brine water) – High pipeline costs; Need to address upgrades to metallurgy as well

as minimizing particulate drift; Need full-scale implementation data

• Possible Solutions – Cooperation to share pipeline costs – More information needed on proven technology using sea water with

information on metallurgy, reliability of the equipment in this service and how to retrofit to a closed loop system.

• Next Step – Organize additional Forums on these topics

End-User Interest in Technologies to Address Process Cooling Needs

71% 65%

53%

41%

24% 24%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Recycling,Treatment andReuse of Water

Hybrid Cooling New CoolingTowerFill

Cooling TowerOptimization

Dry Cooling Other Technologies

Focus of Today’s Program: Understanding the Options for

Reuse and Treatment of Unconventional Sources

A robust water management strategy might involve: • Reducing water waste—operational excellence • Installing new technologies that use less water • Reusing water within the plant • Developing additional fresh water supplies • Upgrading unconventional water resources

with additional treatment (ex: desalinization)

For more information or to participate in future Forums, contact: Kathey Ferland Texas Industries of the Future The University of Texas at Austin 512-232-4823 [email protected] http://TexasIOF.ceer.utexas.edu/ All presentations from Process Cooling Technology Forum available at Texas IOF website at http://texasiof.ceer.utexas.edu/docs_pres/conferences.htm

mailto:[email protected]

https://texasiof.ceer.utexas.edu/

http://texasiof.ceer.utexas.edu/docs_pres/conferences.htm

Addendum Summary of Breakout Group Topics

Barriers Possible Solutions

• Economics are not clear. Develop economics for each site on process temperature rise. This will provide justification to help drive implementation

• Problem not perceived as near term, so planning is weak

• Therefore not a high priority for resources and implementation

• Equipment or technology costs are not readily available

• Identify low cost efficiency improvements • Improve process reliability under water

distressed conditions • Identify cooling water misdistribution

opportunities and resulting fouling and water treatment chemistry improvements

• Develop macro- economics for degradation of cooling water return temperature to the process such as – manufacturing dollars per 1 ºF loss in temperature

• Addition of hybrid module systems to existing cooling infrastructure can optimize cooling load between conventional and more efficient systems, as well as allow flexibility during cooling tower maintenance downtimes

Next Step: Compile high level installed cost information for each technology so that the most effective retrofit solution may be chosen for a specific objective

Topic 1: Existing Technology and Operations Strategy: Sustain process reliability under water distressed

conditions through lowest cost efficiency improvements


Cheapest cooling solution is today’s cooling towers • Benefits of implementing a

“premium” system unclear (timing, magnitude, scope )

• Short-term contingency plans do not address issue long term

• Not all solutions are proven or available for contingency or quick deployment

Unknowns • Applicability • Cost • Scale up • Reliability

Develop a common evaluation template, populate data as available Needs a champion site (gutsy end user). EPC traditionally need proven and revert to existing 1. Paper study 2. Real test (bench scale) 3. Pilot 4. Field at commercial scale Consider consortium approach Next Step: Tabulate “technologies” with parameters and attributes • Energy impact • Water impact • New vs. retrofit applicability • Magnitude cost • Applicability • Stage

Topic 2: New Technologies Strategy: Increase understanding of available and developing

technologies with respect to commercial readiness and impacts


• Technologies are not demonstrated and proven in chemical plants/refineries.

• Confusing

presentation of information on different technologies makes their evaluation or comparison difficult.

• Case study comparing technologies on the same parameters, with “example” plant input.

• Process to speed demonstration of technologies in chemical plant/refinery applications.

• Tool to allow an end-user to screen technologies for themselves. High level screening. Default inputs, which can be modified by end user if they have the data.

• Need to frame this issue in terms of the probability of the following: future water restrictions, the percent and duration of water restrictions, lost revenue from production decreases and costs of temporary water supplies/treatment.

Topic 3: Risk and Management Strategy: Develop comparable information

on cost and performance of new technologies

Barriers

• Resource, capital and technology constraints • High system complexity (reuse impacts on

discharge quality and quantity) could lead to unintended adverse consequences

• Potential penalty for early action



1. Reuse of Wastewater in Plant


• Pipeline costs high

• Need to address

upgrades to metallurgy as well as minimizing particulate drift

• Need full-scale

implementation data, not just a pilot study

• Cooperation on pipeline installation between several companies in order to bring the cost of transporting water down.

• More information needed on proven

technology using sea water with information on metallurgy, reliability of the equipment in this service and how to retrofit to a closed loop system.



2. Use of sea water, brackish water or brine water


Water is cheap and alternate supply sources may adversely impact the quality, requiring more and unknown costs

Look at ‘good enough’ cleanup of the water to be used in another part of the plant. Ex: Evaluate all blow downs for use as cooling tower makeup. To do this the cycles of conductivity need to be monitored closely and may need conductivity analyzers installed.


3. Reuse of Wasted Water