Process intensification involves making fundamental changes to processing technologies to yield improved product quality, throughput, and energy efficiency. It is a management and design tool used to optimize energy resources in process plants employing conventional technologies.

Pinch analysis is the most common process integration tool. It involves the use of heat exchanger networks to optimize heat energy by linking hot and cold process streams in the most thermodynamically advantageous way. Exergy analysis is another tool used for process integration that takes into account all energy flows.

The potential for energy savings from process integration depends on the individual plant and applications. The major short-term benefits are expected in the food and drink and pulp and paper industries. Estimates of the potential energy savings and the payback period for various applications, identified by process integration studies in the EU (only due to fuel use, excluding feedstock in the chemical industry) are given in Table 6.1. The application of PI differs widely per EU member state.

The main barriers to the further use of process integration in the EU include

• the need for capital expenditure for...