Boiler Economiser saves UK Chemical Manufacturer £70,000 per year

In a typical boiler system, 10-20% of energy is lost in the form of heat escaping to the atmosphere. This is a well known problem and one that a large chemical client of ours wished to tackle following the purchase of a second hand boiler.

The Solution: Installation of an Economiser

Serck recommended the installation of a Serck designed economiser. The economiser uses the waste heat from the boiler exhaust that would otherwise be lost to the atmosphere to preheat the feed water into the boiler. This raises the temperature of the boiler feedwater, lowering the needed energy input, in turn reducing the firing rates needed for the boiler output. The unit was designed specifically to keep the flue gases above condensation temperature to minimise the corrosive effect on the unit.

The Results: A 4-month ROI and ongoing savings

Thanks to a benchmark measure before and after installation, we were able to quantify the energy savings obtained from the installation of the Economiser. The customer saves approximately £70,000 per year on this boiler alone. This represents a return on investment of less than 4 months on the initial outlay cost of the Economiser.

Since this first installation our client has had more Serck Economisers fitted on their boilers. Due to the corrosive effect of the system, our maintenance team carry out a refurbishment on the Economisers every four to five years in order to minimise potential for leaks and protect this important investment.

The cost saving benefit to the client in this particular instance is fantastic and many years later they are still using the same Serck Economiser design due to the excellent suitability of the original solution, and the high quality of the on-going refurbishment work.