Total UK Ltd has installed two Babcock Wanson high efficiency Thermal Fluid Heaters at its Preston based Bitumen Division to improve operating costs and cut emissions.
Thermal Fluid Heaters to Heat Bitumen
Total Bitumen, which has more than 40 years’ experience in the UK market, offers a wide bitumen product range for road construction and industrial applications. The new Babcock Wanson EPC ES Thermal Fluid Heaters are being used to heat the bitumen to a constant 180°C to maintain its fluid state. If the bitumen falls below this temperature it becomes difficult – and eventually impossible – to pump the product to where it needs to go. An accurate and reliable heat source is therefore essential.The Solution
The Babcock Wanson EPC ES fully automatic coil type, multi-pass Thermal Fluid Heaters were chosen Total Bitumen to meet this need. They provide optimal distribution of the heat, high fluid velocity in the exchange tubes and continuous flow monitoring to ensure long fluid life and the highest level of safety. The EPC Heaters also precisely match fuel input to plant energy requirements and include their own in-built exhaust gas to combustion air economiser for highest practicable operating efficiency. With lower energy input demand also comes lower total exhaust emissions, so there are also environmental benefits.
For Duncan McLeod, Engineering Manager at Total Bitumen Preston, the key benefits already reaped from the EPC heaters include a reduction in fuel costs and stack emissions, greater efficiency and a move to natural gas instead of heavy fuel, which has removed the need for on site fuel storage.
Babcock Wanson offers a complete range of products and services for boiler houses and other process heating needs, from steam boilers, thermal fluid heaters, rapid steam generators and hot water boilers to VOC and odour treatment by thermal oxidation, water treatment or process air heating solutions. The company aims to help optimise customer’s energy production with high quality products and efficient service.Customer Testimonials
— Loucas Antoniou, Engineering Manager at Bakkavor Meals London“The Thermal Oxidiser is the most efficient way of removing any smells and it’s also very straightforward to use. We have been a customer of Babcock Wanson for many years and have always enjoyed a good service.”
— Carbon Trust Annual Report 2009/10“A major carbon footprint reduction will be achieved when the scheme currently in progress to change the main boiler fuel from heating oil to gas is completed in summer 2010. This £900k project will reduce our carbon emissions via energy usage by around 15% by removing the need to use heavy fuel oil, as the new boiler plant will use natural gas as its main fuel source.”
— Webster & Horsfall“What we hadn’t expected initially though is the level of control the new system provides us with; it’s amazing. It alerts us to any potential issues, is easy to maintain (no annual statutory inspection is required) and is quick to respond. All that and it doesn’t take up much room.”
— Peter Connolly, Production Engineer at Vacu-Lug“The ESM 2000 installation, together with an ongoing programme of process plant lagging and steam trap maintenance, has enabled us to significantly reduce our gas usage and cushion the company against rising gas prices.”
— Dave Scrivens, Facilities Manager at Plastic Omnium“Babcock Wanson’s expertise and ability to provide a whole package made them the leading contender for this project. On further investigation, their proposal was also commercially viable, which sealed the deal.”
— Denis Kelly, Engineering & Construction Manager at Stolthaven Dagenham“The Thermal Fluid Heaters themselves were ideal for this project as they are based on mature technology and are well proven in the field. They are robust and also require very little maintenance.”
— Ian McQuarrie, Engineering Manager at Puredrive“During my three years here, the Steam Generators and Thermal Fluid Heaters have worked flawlessly. Babcock Wanson carries a good name in the business for both quality and equipment longevity. Their knowledge, company wide, is exceptional and the whole package from installation through to service is managed professionally.”
— Jason Hall, J&A Young Engineering Manager“We had estimated our steam requirements, but Babcock Wanson had the experience to understand that we had underestimated this. In fact, the erratic nature of the steam loads would have been impossible to meet under our existing spec. Babcock Wanson was able to identify this as well as provide a very energy efficient solution with a number of enhanced features”.
— Lee Bullen, Corrugated Services Manager at Board24“It’s running very well, both easy to use and efficient. The service from Babcock Wanson has also been very good.”
— Peter Shrimpton, Engineering Projects Manager at Bridgnorth Aluminium Ltd“We were unfamiliar with Babcock Wanson, but we’ve had no problems with it whatsoever; you simply switch it on and it works – simple as that! The service we have received from Babcock Wanson has also been great.”