Descripción del proyecto
Un novedoso dispositivo convierte las pérdidas de energía del gas natural en electricidad
El gas natural se presenta como un candidato prometedor en la transición energética para reducir las emisiones de carbono. A pesar de su potencial, hay una serie de problemas que dificultan su adopción generalizada. En las últimas etapas de su distribución, se aplica una reducción de la presión del gas para mantener la red de distribución a baja presión, lo que provoca pérdidas de energía y anula los beneficios del gas natural. El proyecto VOLUMICO, financiado con fondos europeos, apoya a la empresa italiana Sinergia SpA en el desarrollo de un dispositivo autónomo, fácil de instalar y robusto para reducir la presión del gas en un solo paso y recuperar la pérdida de energía. El dispositivo recupera la pérdida de energía de la expansión del gas y la caída de presión para producir energía eléctrica adicional de bajo coste y bajas emisiones de carbono que se puede utilizar internamente o volcarse a la red.
Objetivo
To address its growing energy needs, Europe is seeking to increase the usage of more environmentally friendly energy sources with increased efficiency. In response, the market is leaning more towards natural gas, with market penetration growing at 64% faster than any other source! However, its wider adoption is being hampered by the energy losses and energy wastage resulting in the gas depressurisation from the transportation network pressure (40-60 bar) to the local distribution network pressure (≤1.5 bar). The losses result in reduced efficiency in the gas networks and higher infrastructural and plant management costs – which are often passed to the final end users. There is a dire need to develop a technology that streamlines the gas distribution network, being capable to recover the energy lost during pressure drops and boosting its cost effectiveness. We are SINERGIA, an Italian company specialized in the design and development of plants for the production, treatment, drying, filtration and separation of compressed air and technical gases. Leveraging 22 years of industrial experience and our closeness to the natural gas and its stakeholders, we have developed the VOLUMICO micro-cogenerator. While providing in a single step the gas at the desired pressure to the required value of the domestic or industrial users, VOLUMICO recovers the energy loss from its expansion and pressure drop to produce additional low-cost, low-carbon electrical power to be used internally or fed to the grid. Targeting consumers – SMEs, municipal utilities, public institutions, industrial/residential districts – and gas suppliers, VOLUMICO will enable reduction in energy bills (-35%) through highly efficient energy extraction for the first ones, and reduction of infrastructure and maintenance costs (-30% of CAPEX/OPEX) for the latters. Within a 5-year period, Sinergia will generate a cumulative revenue and profit of €49.6M and almost €12.7M respectively, creating a total of 33 jobs.
Ámbito científico
Not validated
Not validated
Programa(s)
Convocatoria de propuestas
Consulte otros proyectos de esta convocatoriaConvocatoria de subcontratación
H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-1
Régimen de financiación
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinador
24021 ALBINO
Italia
Organización definida por ella misma como pequeña y mediana empresa (pyme) en el momento de la firma del acuerdo de subvención.