Waste Heat Recovery

Waste heat recovery is one of the simplest and most effective ways to improve industrial energy efficiency, offering the potential for significant reductions in operating costs. By reusing existing but previously untapped thermal energy, the demand for primary energy sources is lowered, resulting in reduced fuel consumption and lower carbon emissions. This not only supports the achievement of sustainability goals but also provides a competitive advantage through more conscious and cost-effective operations.

Modern technologies – such as intelligent thermal batteries – enable efficient storage and time-shifted utilization of waste heat. These solutions not only relieve the load on existing systems, but also reduce maintenance requirements and slow down equipment wear. In this way, waste heat utilization is not a cost, but a smart, return-generating investment – and a key pillar of a sustainable future.

The HeatTank Intelligent Thermal Battery is a good solution to store waste heat so it can be used later or even in different locations. Effective waste heat utilization practices include heat transport solutions highlighted in previous articles, as well as on-site waste heat management such as the following example:

When a gas engine is shut down, significantly more expensive gas boilers must be operated instead of utilizing the waste heat generated by the engine. This approach is not only costly but also less energy efficient. To address this, we installed a HeatTank 50-1 intelligent thermal battery optimized for a temperature range of 85–90 °C. The goal was to maintain heating supply for as long as possible after the gas engine shutdown and to recover the heat released during the cooling of steel structures heated to several hundred degrees. The system can effectively utilize hot water with a supply temperature of up to 81 °C, substantially reducing energy demand. The installed HeatTank not only stabilizes the water temperature but also achieves an annual heat energy saving of nearly 90,000 kWh—demonstrating a clear example of how costly energy substitution can be replaced with an intelligent, sustainable solution.