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TetraPak: Full steam ahead with better energy efficiency

08/06/2023

Press release
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TetraPak technology helps reduce energy consumption & save money with tubular & plate heat exchangers.
 
There are many reasons why upgrading the tubular or plate heat exchanger makes sound commercial sense, not least when it comes to improving efficiency. But there’s one particular area where Tetra Pak’s next generation of tubular and plate heat exchangers can deliver significant monetary savings – energy and utility consumption.
 
A commitment to improved sustainability
As a global leader in processing technology, Tetra Pak can provide many standalone components to optimize customers’ operations – solutions that offer great value for money and improved efficiency. Processing technologies and services that reduce energy and water consumption are a big part of that, and sustainability was a focus during the development of latest generation of the Tetra Pak® Tubular Heat Exchangers and Tetra Pak® Plate Heat Exchangers.
Tubular Heat Exchanger
 
“We looked at reducing consumption, and ways to reduce what it costs for our customers to run their unit,” says Jimmy Moons, the Global Commercial Product Manager for Heat Exchangers at Tetra Pak. “Lowering the amount of energy required for the same production output is great for more sustainable operations, but it also lowers your daily running costs.”
 
Innovation that saves money
With the latest generation of the Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers, the R&D development led to a unique innovation – patent-pending Q corrugation on the inner tubes. “This corrugation leads to up to a 40% reduction in pressure drop, which can reduce your electricity consumption for the heat exchanger pump by up to 40%,” says Moons. “And with less pressure required, you can use a smaller, cheaper pump than was previously required, saving you further costs and lowering your total carbon footprint.”
 
The Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchangers have been similarly optimized. Thanks to a smoother pattern on the plates, and an optimized flow distribution, they deliver 15% greater heat transfer and require 10% less pumping power – both of which translate to less electricity required for the same production output.
Plate Heat Exchangers
 
Further savings in energy and cost
It’s not just thanks to innovation and new technology that the Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers and Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchangers can reduce the energy and utility consumption – other design features and optional extras have been made with more sustainable operations in mind. Adding protective panels to one of the Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers reduces energy costs by up to 6%; add insulation behind those panels, and the reduction can be up to 11%.
 
The overall design and size of the Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers, particularly when considering P2P (product-to-product) tube insert types, also contributes to greater efficiency (and savings). With the product regeneration section increasingly growing in size it means the amount of steam required for heating – and ice water for cooling – is reduced. “Again, both of those are ultimately consuming electricity, so it’s saving you more money,” says Moons.
 
And the Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchanger sections equipped with P2P tube insert types are more efficient than product-to-water (P2W) tube insert types. Thanks to the higher energy regeneration of the P2P’s energy-saving, ultra-compact design, energy costs (cooling and steam) can be reduced by as much as 55% compared to traditional P2W designs.
 
A unique analysis tool
Further improving energy efficiency, and reducing operating costs, is the goal of Tetra Pak’s Energy Management service. An analysis and consulting service with the purpose of improving production economy, Energy Management involves a plant visit once the heat exchanger is up and running to collect usage data and utilities costs – a heat exchanger specialist then analyses the improvement opportunities using an advanced calculation tool, with the results showing the impact on customers’ operating costs of various proposed actions.
 
Increasing the heat recovery level is a hidden source of substantial yearly cost savings for many heat exchangers, and Tetra Pak’s calculation models for their energy efficiency optimization can deliver significant monetary savings. For example, one dairy producer running a 40,000 kg/h milk pasteurizer was able to increase the heat recovery from 90 to 94 % – the effect on their total operating cost was a saving of Euro 62,000 per year.
 
A standalone solution
There are many benefits beyond efficiency and cost savings when choosing Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers and Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchangers as a central part of a line – not least the application expertise and local support. But as a standalone solution, they are easy to buy, install, operate, adapt, and maintain. A flexible solution that can be installed alongside non-Tetra Pak equipment, setting up one of Tetra Pak’s heat exchangers should, says Moons, be a relatively quick operation – “from just a couple of hours to a couple of days – they are typically not that complex to integrate.”
 
And being a robust and reliable solution, Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchangers and Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchangers – like all Tetra Pak’s processing components – are designed to help optimize customers’ operations as well as saving money; proven technology that represents great value for money, backed by support throughout the component’s entire lifecycle and flexible financing options (credit or leasing).
 
“We like to understand what it is that each customer really needs from their heat exchanger, and configure a solution from there,” says Moons. “We understand that running costs are vitally important these days, just as sustainability is – that’s why we worked so hard to make our tubular heat exchangers and plate heat exchangers more energy efficient. They are a win-win solution for food and beverage producers.”
 
Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchanger for food products
Tetra Pak Plate Heat Exchanger is a range of reliable and energy efficient plate heat exchangers optimized to maintain product quality:
  Durable design with plate geometry optimized for food applications
  Provides gentle, energy efficient heating, optimized to maintain product quality
  Easy to clean, service and maintain, and can even be rebuilt for new applications or different capacities
  Long equipment lifetime thanks to the robustness of gaskets and plate pressing technology.
 
The tall and narrow shape of the heat exchangers' plates, the surface pattern, and the size of the portholes where the product enters are all specially designed for food processing. Together they enable an even product flow, an even product distribution over the entire plate and an efficient, even heat transfer. This design has no low-velocity areas, which reduces fouling and thus enables longer production runs. Even flow rates also make cleaning more effective, and therefore faster.
 
 Quick facts
A plate heat exchanger for heat treatment of food products in a processing line. Every detail is carefully designed to ensure the highest hygienic standards, gentle product treatment and efficient cleaning. 
CAPACITY: Up to 100,000 l/h
APPLICATIONS: Food products from low to high viscosity, with fibres up to max 5mm.
 
Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchanger with P2P technology
P2P technology offers major energy-saving potential. Key features, including a smart crevice-free weld and innovative spring box, offer unsurpassed hygiene.
 
The 3-A approved, innovative, cost-cutting, ultra-hygienic tube heat exchanger with product-to-product (P2P) technology can more than halve the energy or investment costs compared to product-to-water alternatives. P2P technology offers major energy-saving potential:
  Low total cost of ownership
  Up to 55% higher energy efficiency through lower steam and cooling water consumption
  Costs up to 55% less than comparable P2W alternatives depending on energy configuration
  Very long equipment lifetime 
  Fully hygienic design
  Approved by 3-A standard (see also additional information below)
  Innovative patent-pending weld eliminates crevices
  Patented spring box separating the inner tubes eliminates need for internal divider
  Unique flexibility
  Can run a wide range of product combinations, including products with particles
  Versatile in supporting different tube combinations,
  Super-compact design, with minimal distance between tubes, saves space
 
Tetra Pak Tubular Heat Exchanger with P2P technology saves money in multiple ways. It cuts energy bills by up to 55% through lower steam and cooling water consumption compared to product-to-water (P2W) alternatives. Its ultra-compact design also uses less steel than P2W alternatives, making it more affordable. Depending on the chosen energy-saving configuration, it can cost less than half as much as a comparable P2W unit. A built-in floating protection system alleviates the risk of metal fatigue caused by thermal stress. As a result, the unit lasts for many years – as long as customer’s plant, in fact.
 
 Quick facts
A tubular heat exchanger for heat treatment of food products in a processing line
CAPACITY: 200 l/h 60,000 l/h
APPLICATIONS: Food products from low to high viscosity, with or without particles and products with fibres or pulp.
 
Some complementary data
The 3-A Sanitary Standards are American standards related to the design and production of equipment intended for contact with food. The aim of the 3-A Sanitary Standards is to protect consumers from potential risks of food contamination.
3-A certification is an indication that a piece of equipment has been third-party verified to meet 3-A standards by a CCE. Any equipment used in food, beverage, and pharmaceutical manufacturing operations can be 3-A certified, such as pumps, tanks, and valves.
 
Source: tetrapak.com

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