8 Industries that can Reduce their Carbon Footprint using Absolicon’s Solar Technology

It is well-known that most industries require a lot of energy to keep their production lines going.

Consider a factory producing pharmaceutical pills for global distribution.

Many processes are automated in the factory from various sophisticated machines to conveyor belts. The production process will range from mixing ingredients in exact proportions until the finished product when the pills are sealed into small containers or packages. One step at a time.

It is not surprising if the first thing that comes to mind is electricity when the word ‘energy’ is mentioned. What is less well-known is that, for many industries, heating or cooling consumes large amounts of energy.

Heat is Half

Heating or cooling can gobble up a lot of energy resources. There is a saying within renewable energy that ‘heat is half.’ What this means is that heat can represent up to half of the resources consumed by many industries as part of their production process. Today vast quantities of oil, coal, and gas are still being used to produce heating or cooling. This is of course bad for the environment as it releases CO2 emissions.

The good news is that this is one of the areas where businesses can actively choose to make a difference.

Below are 8 industries whose carbon footprint and operating costs could be reduced if they switched over to renewable energy sources such as Absolicon’s solar technology. An added benefit is that using renewable energy also helps to insulate from unpredictable price fluctuations since less energy is acquired externally.

Industries suitable for Absolicon’s T160 Solar Collector

1)?????Breweries and Beverages

For breweries and beverage plants, solar thermal energy can be an ideal energy source which can enable significant cuts in energy costs and CO2 emissions.

There are a couple of reasons for this. Beverage production consumes significant amounts of energy with most of it used for low to medium temperature heating. Production of beverages also peaks during the sunniest months of the year. This combination means that breweries and beverages are perfect for solar thermal energy.

Not only would the T160 Solar Collector reduce harmful emissions that would otherwise be released during beverage production, but it could also help to cut energy costs. Solar thermal energy can replace up to 70% of the energy that a brewery or beverage plant uses.

Brewery and beverage applications using solar thermal: cleaning, washing, boiling, mashing, pasteurization, cooling, preheating of boiler feedwater.

2)?????Food Processing

Using solar thermal energy in food processing can improve profitability and sustainability. Processing food requires substantial amounts of energy, most of it is as low to medium heat. This kind of heat requirement is a perfect fit for using solar thermal energy.

Up to 60% of the energy consumed in a typical food processing plant can be replaced with solar energy. One such example is in processed seafood where most of the energy used is for cooling. Of course, using a renewable energy source such as solar thermal energy is also a more environmentally friendly solution.

Food processing applications using solar thermal: cleaning, drying, evaporation, distillation, pasteurization, sterilization, cooking, process heat, cooling, preheating of water boiler.

3)?????Textiles

Textile production is another industry which would benefit from switching to solar thermal energy. As with food processing, breweries and beverages, the textile industry also consumes large amounts of low to medium heat as part of the production process.

Up to 50% of all the energy used in a typical textile mill can be replaced with solar energy. Making this change would not only reduce the amount of CO2 emissions released, but it would also help lower operating costs.

Textile production applications using solar thermal: bleaching, washing, dyeing, drying, heat setting, preheating of boiler feedwater.

4)?????District Heating

The global solar district heating market is expected to expand as the technology is a cost-effective method in line with global climate goals.

Some countries are actively encouraging solar solutions for district heating. For example, Denmark is planning to completely switch from natural gas to renewable energy in district heating.

District heating is designed to improve air quality in cities by moving combustion to one place and replacing individual boilers. Solar district heating now also improves the process further by replacing combustion in heating plants with clean solar energy.

5)?????Dairy

A few dairy products are among the most climate-damaging products in the world. It is also important to be aware that every tonne of dairy product processed in the industry results in a significant amount of CO2 emission.

The carbon footprint of these products can be reduced significantly by supplying solar heating in the processing unit.

Dairy industry applications using solar thermal: cleaning, drying, evaporation, pasteurization, separation.

6)?????Mining

60% of mining operations such as electrowinning and heap leaching require temperatures of below 100° C. This means that the Absolicon Solar Collector is an efficient solution as it can efficiently produce steam of up to 160° C. Implementing this solution can also save emissions up to 40% of total operating costs of mining heat demands.

1 kW solar field collector in a mine can save:

-?????????200 ltr of Diesel and 600 kg of CO2 per year

-?????????300 m3 of Gas and 500 kg of CO2 per year

-?????????500 kg of Coal and 1200 kg of CO2 per year

Mining industry applications using solar thermal: leach solution, evaporate wastewater, solvent preheating.

7)?????Desalination

Desalination is the process of removing salt. In this industry solar desalination can replace or supplement existing systems, providing a renewable energy alternative.

Huge amounts of energy are needed in desalination industries for the process to become feasible. This energy supply can be met by different energy sources. The most common raw material used is oil. On average, it requires 27 ml of oil to produce 1 litre of freshwater.

Combining thermal desalination with solar collectors will reduce costs and decrease emissions from using oil. It also provides a renewable and competitive option for desalination.

Desalination application using solar thermal: agriculture, drinkable water, wastewater treatment, mining, industrial applications.

8)?????Pharmaceuticals

The process of producing pills for a pharmaceutical business was used as an example in the beginning of the article. A solar thermal energy solution is applicable for all stages of the pharmaceutical industry, all the way from research to the finished product.

Absolicon solar system provides effective utilization of solar thermal energy for industrial process heat application. This can reduce dependency on fossil fuels and unsustainable biomass energy consumption.

Pharmaceutical application using solar thermal: evaporation, drying, cleaning in place, sterilization, cooking, distillation.

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