The POWERED project
Net-conscious energy management for industrial processes and applications
Energy Management System for industrial processes
Recently, the POWERED project was kicked off. For this project, Technolution Spark and Phase to Phase worked together on the development of an energy management system for applications in industrial processes.
The POWERED consortium develops technology that produces renewable and recycled carbon DME (dimethyl ether) by, among other things, capturing the carbon dioxide in the air. This alternative for fossil fuels such as DME and LPG, as well as other E-fuels, will continue to become more important for the industry and transportation sector. The dynamic control of such industrial chemical processes based on sustainable energy supply through means of an energy management system (EMS) can offer a lot of benefits.
Scale up production with sustainable energy surplus
Thanks to the energy management system, the DME production will be scaled up when there is a surplus of (cheap) sustainable energy available. The result is cost-competitive DME, while no sustainable energy is wasted. In addition, any congestion issues in the electricity grid can be addressed, since peaks in sustainable energy production can be compensated for with the production of carbon DME. The intended technical architecture for the energy management system will also be applicable for more than one purpose; such as a dynamic connection between sustainable sources of electricity and (large scale) industrial chemical installations.
Completely renewable
DME is synthetic replacement for LPG and can be used in diesel engines. It is also used in its capacity as propellant gas for hairspray or deodorants and is a basic raw industrial material. In addition, DME can be used for long term and large scale energy storage (e.g. seasonal storage). It is possible to produce DME in a fully sustainable manner from CO2 with ‘sorption-enhanced DME synthesis’ – or SEDMES. This does require a lot of electric energy. The POWERED project focuses on the development of SEDMES which functions entirely on sustainable energy.
A strong consortium
The sustainable and efficient production of DME is not simple. However, the potential benefits – entirely renewable fuel, optimal use of sustainable energy and relieving the power grid – are significant. The POWERED consortium (Production Of Wind Energy and other Renewable Energy based DME) is therefore made up out of strong players to eventually create a commercial demonstration. The following parties are also participating, in addition to Technolution Spark and Phase to Phase: TNO, Technip, Shell ETCA, VDL Groep, Tata Steel, Dimeta, Aramco, and Nouryon.
The MOOI22 project POWERED has received a grant from the Topsector Energie from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy. Would you like to know more about innovative ‘sorption-enhanced DME synthesis’ (SEDMES) technology and the POWERED project?
