Abstract
Heat is the world's largest energy end use, accounting for almost half of global final energy consumption in 2021 (IEA, 2021). Heat is utilized in various applications across a broad range of industries, including refining, chemicals, pulp and paper, textile manufacturing, district heating systems, buildings, etc.
Large scale, low-temperature heat pumps are a well-established technology and are currently able to achieve temperature levels of up to 100°C. In recent years, demonstration projects involving Siemens Energy and other original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have shown that temperatures up to 150°C and 4 bar are within reach using modern high-temperature heat pumps. Further progress has been made to extend this range up to 270°C and pressure levels up to 60 barA using subsequent steam compression. Such configurations recently became bid ready in the marketplace.
This paper provides an underlying description of modern electric heat pump technology and will show how it can be used as a low-carbon alternative to traditional heating methods, such as oil- or gas-fired boilers. Several real-world applications will be presented, including one concept at a large integrated chemical complex in Europe, where a high-temperature heat pump and steam compressor are combined to achieve a temperature of 240°C at 19 barA with a coefficient of performance (COP) of 3.
