LOW-BIN: getting the most from Combined Heat & Power (CHP) geothermal technology
08/09/2009
EU funded LOW-BIN project aims at getting the most from Combined Heat and Power (CHP) technology, by providing two-prototype “green” solutions for improving fossil fuel efficiency through high efficiency power generation and heat recovery for heating and cooling.
A CHP machine was developed with heat recovery from cooling circuits with total energy efficiency of 98-99% compared with 7-15% for existing units producing only electricity and 35-60% for existing geothermal cogeneration schemes.
Geothermal binary power generation is a pollution free technology leading in reducing effectively greenhouse gases emissions to the atmosphere resulting from power generation by fossil fuels. According to estimations, the short-term emissions reductions resulting from the LOW-BIN project (by 2010) amounts at around 3.6 million tons of CO2. Long term CO2 emissions reduction is expected to be considerably larger.
Under the 6th European Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development, this project started on the 1st March 2006 and lasted 3 years.
It intended to complement and advance geothermal binary plants technology by developing two binary units, the first one for power generation at lower temperatures 65-90 °C (currently 90-100 °C) and the second one for heat and power cogeneration at higher temperatures (120-150°C) with drastically improved overall energy efficiency. Both machines comprised fully integrated units (integrating steam turbine, cooling heat exchanger, liquid pump, pre-heater…).
Both LOW-BIN prototypes can be used in industrial waste heat recovery systems, resulting in additional power to be generated from waste heat, especially in electricity intensive industries (which need electricity and not heat), further improving energy efficiency in the European Union.
The cost reductions to the geothermal heat and power cogeneration schemes will facilitate the exploitation of the vast resources of enhanced geothermal systems.
The LOW-BIN consortium was coordinated by Greek Centre of Renewable Energy Sources (CRES) and consisted of 9 partners (academic and SME) from 8 countries. The total budget of the LOW-BIN project amounts at 3.996.590, of which 1,8 million paid by the EU budget (17, 70% of the total amount is devoted to R&D activities, 69,64% was invested in Demonstration and 9,28% to Innovation Related Activities).
For more information please contact:
Dr. C. Karytsas and D. Mendrinos
Centre for Renewable Energy Sources
kkari@cres.gr
Tel. +30210 6603300
http://www.lowbin.eu/
PDF version of the Press Release
|
