SteamLift – Efficiently converting waste heat into steam
SteamLift utilizes process waste heat, replacing conventional steam generation with a highly efficient, waste heat-based solution. The heat pump generates hot water, which evaporates the condensate in the low-pressure boiler and compresses the low-pressure steam to the required pressure level. This significantly reduces the use of fossil fuels – a major advantage, especially in energy-intensive drying processes such as those used in the paper industry.
Modern heat pumps achieve high COP values even with large temperature differences. This significantly reduces the specific energy costs of steam generation. SteamLift creates a stable and economical basis for production, especially when steam generation prices are volatile.
SteamLift can be flexibly combined with existing steam generators. Depending on energy prices and availability, it is possible to switch between heat pump and conventional steam generation at any time. This hybrid mode of operation minimizes risks and enables optimized, site-specific operation of the entire steam system.
The use of waste heat directly reduces CO₂ emissions and helps companies meet ambitious climate targets and regulatory requirements. For energy-intensive industries, SteamLift is a key component on the path to defossilized production.
Many paper production sites have enormous waste heat potential in the form of warm exhaust air or process water, which has not been exploited economically to date. SteamLift taps into these energy sources technically and economically—especially where conventional heat recovery reaches its limits.
The cost-effectiveness of our solution depends directly on the interaction between the waste heat source, temperature differences, compression, process requirements, and load conditions. airinotec analyzes these parameters in detail and develops customized concepts based on them—including pinch analysis, cost-effectiveness assessment, and support with funding advice.
Industrial system solution for defossilized steam generation
SteamLift is a customer- and project-specific system solution from airinotec that converts unused waste heat from production into valuable steam. The system was developed specifically for energy-intensive locations where conventional heat recovery systems have already been exhausted and steam generation is currently based predominantly on fossil fuels. The combination of waste heat utilization, heat pump, low-pressure evaporation, and compression creates an efficient, robust, and flexibly integrable energy system that reduces operating costs, avoids CO₂, and strengthens the sustainability of production.
Technical functionality at a glance
SteamLift uses warm exhaust air or process water as a heat source and first feeds this energy to a high-temperature heat pump. There, the temperature level is raised via the refrigeration circuit and provided as hot water. This hot water serves as an evaporation source for steam generation in the low-pressure boiler. The steam generated is then compressed to the required pressure level so that it can be fed seamlessly into the existing steam system. The integration of existing steam generators enables hybrid operating modes, allowing flexible mapping of base load, peak load, and energy price strategies.
