Efficient Recovery of Low-Grade Heat as an Enabler of Industrial Decarbonization and the Energy Transition

Ignasi Palou-Rivera

Executive Director and Chief Technology Officer

RAPID Manufacturing Institute

ABSTRACT

The release of the Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap by the US Department of Energy in 2022 has helped catalyzed momentum for the continued development of process technologies in order to enable the decarbonization of the critical industrial sectors in the chemical, fuels and related industries. Transformations of the magnitude required to achieve the objective of a net zero industrial sector by 2050 cannot wait for the development, scale-up and deployment of brand new technologies. Instead the continued early adoption of enabling technologies to rapidly increase the efficient and reliable use of energy in existing processing assets with limited investment are key to move towards the stated objectives. The efficient recovery of low-grade heat is a perfect example of these enabling technologies ready to be fully perfected and deployed rapidly.