Steam Systems
About 20% of all energy consumption by industry is
used to generate steam, which is used for a variety
process heating applications as well as facility space
heating. There are many opportunities to improve the
efficiency of steam systems, which can be summarized
into four main areas:
- Steam generation: boiler
controls, water treatment,
maintenance/cleaning of heat transfer
surfaces, matching pressure to end-use
needs, etc.
- Steam distribution: better
insulation, steam trap maintenance, and
finding leaks
- Steam end-use: heat exchanger
maintenance and other measures to
optimize end-use
- Condensate return: optimize
the amount of condensate return and use
of low-pressure steam.
DOE also has several steam systems tools and other
technical resources to help optimize the efficiency
of steam systems.
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