Low-Cost Decarbonization through Heat Recovery: Over the past year, Cadmus evaluated waste heat recovery projects across several energy efficiency programs in the U.S. These projects generally resulted in high energy savings with relatively low capital costs, resulting in short paybacks and significant reductions in energy use and greenhouse gas emissions.
In "Not Just Hot Air: Low-Cost Decarbonization through Heat Recovery," originally presented at ACEEE 2021 Summer Study, Cadmus consultants Joel Zahlan and Evan Talan provide an overview of 12 of the largest waste heat recovery projects, which saved more than 10 million therms per year, offsetting over 52,000 metric tons of CO2 per year. Topics covered include:
- Sources of waste heat
- Recovery methods used
- Calculating the cost per MMBtu of savings associated with waste heat recovery projects
- Comparison of these costs with those of other large electric and gas savings opportunities in energy efficiency programs
Finally, we discuss barriers and opportunities to implementing waste heat recovery based on interviews with program managers, energy advisors, and customers.
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