Case study Climax Molybdenum
About the client
“𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘌𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘪𝘤’𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴.” Climax Molybdenum
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, is the world leading molybdenum producer and supplier. For their plant in the Port of Rotterdam, they wanted to research the possibility of increasing the energy efficiency and reducing CO2 emissions.
About the project
The challenge at Climax Molybdenum is to optimize the factory’s energy efficiency by effectively utilizing available waste heat within its complex heat management system. The factory operates a mix of batch and continuous processes that generate and consume heat, subject to constant fluctuations. These processes involve 25 identified heat and cold sources/sinks, some of which pose difficulties due to factors such as corrosiveness and low temperatures. The goal is to maximize energy savings by integrating heat recovery and
utilization technologies, such as direct heat recovery, heat pumps, mechanical vapor recompression, organic Rankine cycle, steam turbines, and heat storage (molten salt, water, and steam), within the existing infrastructure.
Method
Entropic employed an iterative approach to develop a heat optimization model, using a digital twin of the factory’s 25 heat and cold sources/sinks. The compact methodology
includes:
Data Collection: Gathered design requirements, reviewed prior studies, and collected measurement data.
Data Preparation: Mapped heat sources/sinks, including challenging streams, and cleaned data for accuracy.
Basic Heat Flow Model: Defined source properties, designed initial heat networklayout, conducted pinch analysis, and iterated for optimization.
Intermediate Heat Flow Model: Integrated dynamic loads and time-series data, simulating operational scenarios.
Advanced Heat Flow Model: Built dynamic equipment models and simulated technologies in the digital twin.
This iterative process, with regular factory feedback, ensured quality, adaptability, and tangible results, addressing technical challenges and maximizing energy savings.
Results
The study identified significant opportunities to reduce energy costs and enhance efficiency at the facility through targeted optimizations in two key systems:
System 1
Short-Term Opportunity: Integrating heat provides the quickest and most substantial cost savings.
Savings: 294.609 m³ of gas.
Carbon Emissions Reduction: 886 tons of CO₂.
Long-Term Potential: Incorporating heat pump technology offers additional savings:
Savings: 237.501 m³ of gas.
Carbon Emissions Reduction: 714 tons of CO₂.
System 2
Short-Term Opportunity: Optimizing a drying process using simple heat exchangers and non-corrosive fluids.
Savings: 166.343 m³ of gas.
Carbon Emissions Reduction: 296 tons of CO₂.
By implementing these short- and long-term strategies, the facility can achieve substantial energy and cost savings, improve energy efficiency, and significantly reduce carbon.
“We were impressed with Entropic’s ability to scope innovative solutions at a conceptual level”
