Energy efficiency in the automotive industry
The automotive industry is a sector with a diversified energy profile. Processes vary depending on the specific product being manufactured. The highest energy consumption is concentrated in furnaces, steam generation, compressed air systems, large-area climate control, and pumping and ventilation circuits.
The main energy efficiency opportunities in the sector focus on optimizing boilers and furnaces by improving burner regulation, implementing heat recovery systems from flue gases, and adjusting operating parameters to minimize excess air and radiation losses. In paint and drying ovens, heat recovery through economizers, heat exchangers, or air recirculation can significantly reduce fuel consumption and improve cycle times.
Compressed air, which typically accounts for between 10% and 20% of total electrical consumption in automotive plants, offers significant opportunities through leak elimination, proper selection of working pressures, the use of variable frequency drives (VFDs) on compressors and dryers, and automation to manage their operation based on actual demand. Additionally, recovering compression heat —which can represent up to 90% of the electrical energy consumed by compressors— can be used for process water preheating or area heating.
In pumping and ventilation systems, incorporating VFDs allows motor operating speeds to be adjusted according to real-time demand, reducing consumption and avoiding the oversizing typical of fixed-speed systems.
Zoning, time-based control, and the use of pressure and temperature sensors are key tools for achieving more efficient and flexible operation of these systems.
Another critical point is the cooling towers, which are essential for thermal dissipation in painting, welding, and climate control processes. Here, opportunities lie in improving water distribution, keeping fill media and nozzles clean, automating the operation of fans and pumps based on return temperature and ambient conditions, and incorporating variable frequency drives (VFDs) to adapt equipment operation to the actual thermal load at any given time.
Regarding steam generation, boilers can be optimized by improving combustion control, recovering heat from blowdowns, incorporating economizers, and properly managing partial loads. In plants with high and stable thermal demand, cogeneration or the use of biomass can be viable alternatives to reduce costs and emissions, especially in regions with available local resources.
Energy digitalization is a key pillar for the sector, through the implementation of continuous measurement and monitoring systems for energy and operational variables. This makes it possible to manage the performance of critical systems in real time, detect deviations, anticipate failures, and plan continuous improvement actions, in line with Industry 4.0 standards.
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