“The infrastructure provides a space for collaboration with companies and equipment manufacturers where prototypes can be tested”
TECNALIA is launching a new test bench for generating steam from waste heat to support industry in its transition towards more efficient and sustainable energy models
TECNALIA has launched a new steam generation-test bench using waste heat, which has been installed in its efficient thermal systems laboratory. This infrastructure is one of a kind in Spain. It emulates real industrial thermal processes and validates steam generation solutions safely, flexibly and on a pre-industrial scale.
Its installation significantly boosts TECNALIA’s ability to support the industry as it moves towards more energy-efficient and decarbonised models.
High operational versatility and integration with heat recovery technologies
The new infrastructure is designed to offer multi-purpose steam generation capacity across different configurations, pressures and operating modes, integrating seamlessly with advanced technologies such as high-temperature heat pumps, absorption heat exchangers and thermal storage systems.
Thanks to this versatility, TECNALIA can replicate the conditions of virtually any industrial process that uses steam at pressures between 1.5 and 15 bar, which are common in sectors such as paper, chemical, food, textile and shipbuilding industries, all of which are steam-intensive.
- Furthermore, the new equipment plays a key role in the development of solutions based on harnessing waste heat, one of TECNALIA’s strategic priorities.
- The infrastructure harnesses low- and medium-temperature thermal streams to generate steam either directly or using hybrid technologies, thereby helping to reduce fossil fuel consumption and promote new avenues for electrification and energy efficiency in industry.
- With the new test bench, TECNALIA has also expanded the laboratory’s technical capabilities – it can now operate at temperatures up to 200°C and has an additional 310 kW of thermal power. This enables TECNALIA to tackle more complex projects and develop innovative solutions aimed at the transition to more sustainable energy models.
Collaboration with companies and heating equipment manufacturers
The new infrastructure is designed to be open to collaboration with companies, equipment manufacturers and research centres, offering a unique environment for testing prototypes, validating designs, optimising processes and evaluating the performance of new technologies prior to their implementation in the plant. The module is already part of European initiatives focusing on waste heat harnessing and sustainable steam generation.
This new facility strengthens TECNALIA’s commitment asa technology partner in the development of efficient thermal systems, promoting solutions that enable industry to reduce its energy consumption, cut emissions and move towards more competitive and sustainable production models.