06 October 2021
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Honeywell has announced a collaboration with UK-based company Futraheat for a new heat pump technology that aims to help reduce industrial carbon emissions.
Futraheat's TurboClaw steam compressor, at the heart of its heat pump design, uses Honeywell’s Solstice zd (R1233zd), a non-flammable, ultra-low-global-warming-potential (LGWP) refrigerant. Futraheat has already received a £500,000 grant from Innovate UK to build a 300 kW TurboClaw demonstrator, which it anticipates trialling in early 2022 for waste heat recovery.
High temperature heat pumps take waste heat and transform it into heat that can be reused, enabling companies to dramatically reduce their energy consumption. The TurboClaw technology is said to be unique because it can operate at reduced speeds without oil, lowering the manufacturing, operating and heating costs.
“The need for heat is responsible for 70% of industrial energy demand, most of which is generated by gas, and our TurboClaw technology will be the most cost effective, zero-carbon solution to industrial process heating,” said Tom Taylor, CEO and founder of Surbiton-based Futraheat.
“Our heat pumps can recover waste heat from as low as 70°C, deliver high grade heat up to 150°C, and operate with modern low global warming potential refrigerants. Using Honeywell’s Solstice zd for the development phase of this project brings us a step closer on delivering on that ambition.”
The Futraheat’s heat pump will meet higher temperature needs – up to 150°C – thanks to TurboClaw’s design. Benefits are said to include:
- 80% energy reduction
- 25% typical fuel bill reduction
- Payback in two to three years
- CO₂-free heat when powered by renewable electricity
“Solstice zd is ideal for industrial heat pumps because it is a long-term, environmentally preferable and economical solution that helps producers like Futraheat and their customers maximise energy savings, and reduce carbon emissions,” said Julien Soulet, vice president and general manager, Honeywell Fluorine Products Europe. “The launch of Futraheat’s innovative heat pump TurboClaw technology will truly be a milestone for the industry. The low carbon heat market is at a breakthrough phase and Honeywell’s portfolio of products, legacy of innovation and reputation makes it a partner of choice for companies seeking to bring breakthrough technology to the market.”
Based on hydrofluoro-olefin technology, Solstice zd is non-flammable with a GWP of 1, and offers better capacity and similar efficiency to the phased out R123 in low-pressure centrifugal chillers to cool large buildings and infrastructure, and can be used as a working fluid in high temperature heat pumps.
