Critical Aspects of Efficient Waste Heat Recovery From Low-Temperature Wet Industrial Exhaust

About 60% of unrecovered waste heat in US is low temperature waste heat (<230°C). In case of exhaust flows that contain water vapor over 20% by mass (baking, drying, biofuel production) the latent heat of the “wet component” plays a key role in the process of energy recovery and makes such a recovery economically feasible. Low temperature sources of waste heat have a few specific features, so majority of available techniques developed for high temperature waste heat recovery cannot be successfully applied to justify the cost-effective benefits. The paper discusses the basic requirements for appropriate equipment development along with possible options for heat and water recovery.