Saving Energy in Steel Production
Siemens is reducing energy consumption in steel manufacturing operations. The company’s Simetal Energy Management System allows steel mills to save a lot of money, as energy consumption accounts for 20 to 30 percent of such a facility’s total expenditure. .
Siemens is reducing energy consumption in steel manufacturing operations. The company’s Simetal Energy Management System allows steel mills to save a lot of money, as energy consumption accounts for 20 to 30 percent of such a facility’s total expenditure. The system provides operators with an overview of energy consumption in all production processes and shows where savings can be generated. It also identifies areas in which energy byproducts (e.g. in the form of waste heat or gas) are not being exploited. In addition, the system generates energy consumption forecasts and helps prevent load peaks that are subject to high fines. In general, the Simetal Energy Management System makes steel plants more energy efficient and reduces their carbon dioxide emissions.
Production of one ton of steel requires around 20 gigajoules (5,600 kilowatt-hours) of energy. Expressed in terms of electricity consumption, that figure corresponds roughly to the amount of energy an average German household consumes over a period of 18 months. A large steelworks that manufactures up to five million tons of steel per year therefore consumes around the same amount of energy as seven million households during the same period. Just a one percent reduction in energy consumption can mean huge cost savings for the operator of such a steel plant.
Up until now, energy management at steel mills has been largely based on historical statistics. In contrast, the Simetal Energy Management System systematically records energy flows at a plant. According to the requirements at a steelworks, the solution can involve measuring units, control system interfaces, analysis and forecasting modules, and control elements. Because the system has a modular design, plant operators can launch their optimization measures with any given process and then gradually incorporate other processes or measurements.
The Siemens solution offers a big advantage in that it closely examines the entire production process — from the delivery of raw and pre-production materials to the manufacturing of liquid steel (blast furnace or electric), further processing in hot and cold rolling mills, and treatment lines. Each of these process steps was previously optimized separately. Now even savings potential in auxiliary units at the interfaces to external consumers and suppliers can be revealed and subsequently incorporated into the optimization measures. The system generates proposals for energy-efficient operation of steel manufacturing facilities and helps plant operators plan production in a manner that ensures optimal energy consumption.
