IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/appene/v362y2024ics030626192400391x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Maximizing energy efficiency in wastewater treatment plants: A data-driven approach for waste heat recovery and an economic analysis using Organic Rankine Cycle and thermal energy storage

Author

Listed:
  • Al-Dahidi, Sameer
  • Alrbai, Mohammad
  • Al-Ghussain, Loiy
  • Alahmer, Ali

Abstract

Maximizing energy efficiency through waste heat recovery (WHR) processes is crucial for sustainable and eco-friendly operations across multiple industries, notably in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). This work proposes a comprehensive approach for assessing the WHR feasibility in WWTPs, structured in two main objectives. Firstly, an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model is developed to accurately predict WHR based on operational data, including biogas temperature, biogas pressure, daily production in kWh, and WHR values in kWhth. The second objective focuses on economically evaluating the WHR feasibility based on the estimated WHR values obtained by the ANN model, and then realistically assessing the economic feasibility of integrating the Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) and Seasonal Thermal Energy Storage (STES) systems. With an application to the As-Samra WWTP located in Jordan, the developed ANN model demonstrates promising results in the validation phase, with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 2206 kWh/day, a mean absolute error (MAE) of 1674 kWh/day, and an R-squared (R2) value of 68%. On the other hand, the economic analysis reveals that an optimal ORC system of 412.14 kWe capacity yields a Net Present Value (NPV) of 2.09 million US dollars, a Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) of 0.0749 USD/kWh, a Payback Period (PBP) of 4.8 years, and annual revenues of 428 kUSD. This work also investigates the techno-economic feasibility of integrating ORC-STES. Results indicate that the LCOE and PBP are highly affected by the ORC's capital cost, and integrating STES increases the LCOE to 0.0824 USD/kWh, rendering its integration with ORC infeasible. This study aims to advance the understanding and application of WHR in WWTPs, paving the way for more efficient and sustainable practices in the field.

Suggested Citation

  • Al-Dahidi, Sameer & Alrbai, Mohammad & Al-Ghussain, Loiy & Alahmer, Ali, 2024. "Maximizing energy efficiency in wastewater treatment plants: A data-driven approach for waste heat recovery and an economic analysis using Organic Rankine Cycle and thermal energy storage," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 362(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:362:y:2024:i:c:s030626192400391x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.123008
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S030626192400391X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.apenergy.2024.123008?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Georg Neugebauer & Florian Kretschmer & René Kollmann & Michael Narodoslawsky & Thomas Ertl & Gernot Stoeglehner, 2015. "Mapping Thermal Energy Resource Potentials from Wastewater Treatment Plants," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(10), pages 1-23, September.
    2. Baccioli, Andrea & Ferrari, Lorenzo & Vizza, Francesco & Desideri, Umberto, 2019. "Potential energy recovery by integrating an ORC in a biogas plant," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 256(C).
    3. Yang, Junwen & Chen, Bin, 2021. "Energy efficiency evaluation of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) based on data envelopment analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 289(C).
    4. Miró, Laia & Gasia, Jaume & Cabeza, Luisa F., 2016. "Thermal energy storage (TES) for industrial waste heat (IWH) recovery: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 284-301.
    5. Sunhee Kim & Taehong Sung & Kyung Chun Kim, 2017. "Thermodynamic Performance Analysis of a Biogas-Fuelled Micro-Gas Turbine with a Bottoming Organic Rankine Cycle for Sewage Sludge and Food Waste Treatment Plants," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-22, February.
    6. Zaborowska, Ewa & Czerwionka, Krzysztof & Mąkinia, Jacek, 2021. "Integrated plant-wide modelling for evaluation of the energy balance and greenhouse gas footprint in large wastewater treatment plants," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 282(PA).
    7. Huang, Runyao & Shen, Ziheng & Wang, Hongtao & Xu, Jin & Ai, Zisheng & Zheng, Hongyuan & Liu, Runxi, 2021. "Evaluating the energy efficiency of wastewater treatment plants in the Yangtze River Delta: Perspectives on regional discrepancies," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 297(C).
    8. Jorge Alejandro Silva, 2023. "Wastewater Treatment and Reuse for Sustainable Water Resources Management: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-31, July.
    9. Anna Stoppato & Alberto Benato, 2020. "Life Cycle Assessment of a Commercially Available Organic Rankine Cycle Unit Coupled with a Biomass Boiler," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-17, April.
    10. Elio, Joseph & Milcarek, Ryan J., 2022. "Techno-economic analysis and case study of combined heat and power systems in a wastewater treatment plant," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    11. Ali, Syed Muhammad Hassan & Lenzen, Manfred & Sack, Fabian & Yousefzadeh, Moslem, 2020. "Electricity generation and demand flexibility in wastewater treatment plants: Benefits for 100% renewable electricity grids," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 268(C).
    12. Yang, Tianrun & Liu, Wen & Kramer, Gert Jan & Sun, Qie, 2021. "Seasonal thermal energy storage: A techno-economic literature review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 139(C).
    13. Li, ChangZheng & Umair, Muhammad, 2023. "Does green finance development goals affects renewable energy in China," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 898-905.
    14. Kirchem, Dana & Lynch, Muireann Á. & Bertsch, Valentin & Casey, Eoin, 2020. "Modelling demand response with process models and energy systems models: Potential applications for wastewater treatment within the energy-water nexus," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Yin, Sihua & Yang, Haidong & Xu, Kangkang & Zhu, Chengjiu & Zhang, Shaqing & Liu, Guosheng, 2022. "Dynamic real–time abnormal energy consumption detection and energy efficiency optimization analysis considering uncertainty," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 307(C).
    2. Rosa M. Llácer-Iglesias & P. Amparo López-Jiménez & Modesto Pérez-Sánchez, 2021. "Energy Self-Sufficiency Aiming for Sustainable Wastewater Systems: Are All Options Being Explored?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-20, May.
    3. Walmsley, Timothy Gordon & Philipp, Matthias & Picón-Núñez, Martín & Meschede, Henning & Taylor, Matthew Thomas & Schlosser, Florian & Atkins, Martin John, 2023. "Hybrid renewable energy utility systems for industrial sites: A review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 188(C).
    4. Golzar, Farzin & Silveira, Semida, 2021. "Impact of wastewater heat recovery in buildings on the performance of centralized energy recovery – A case study of Stockholm," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 297(C).
    5. Liu, Lingchi & Zhang, Xiaohong & Lyu, Yanfeng, 2022. "Performance comparison of sewage treatment plants before and after their upgradation using emergy evaluation combined with economic analysis: A case from Southwest China," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 472(C).
    6. Zhu, Wenjing & Duan, Cuncun & Chen, Bin, 2024. "Energy efficiency assessment of wastewater treatment plants in China based on multiregional input–output analysis and data envelopment analysis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 356(C).
    7. Golmohamadi, Hessam, 2022. "Demand-side management in industrial sector: A review of heavy industries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).
    8. Roksana Yasmin & B. M. Ruhul Amin & Rakibuzzaman Shah & Andrew Barton, 2024. "A Survey of Commercial and Industrial Demand Response Flexibility with Energy Storage Systems and Renewable Energy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(2), pages 1-41, January.
    9. Lyden, A. & Brown, C.S. & Kolo, I. & Falcone, G. & Friedrich, D., 2022. "Seasonal thermal energy storage in smart energy systems: District-level applications and modelling approaches," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    10. Beata Pytlik & Daniel Smykowski & Piotr Szulc, 2022. "The Impact of Baffle Geometry in the PCM Heat Storage Unit on the Charging Process with High and Low Water Streams," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(24), pages 1-17, December.
    11. Hu, Nan & Li, Zi-Rui & Xu, Zhe-Wen & Fan, Li-Wu, 2022. "Rapid charging for latent heat thermal energy storage: A state-of-the-art review of close-contact melting," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    12. Yang, Sheng & Shao, Xue-Feng & Luo, Jia-Hao & Baghaei Oskouei, Seyedmohsen & Bayer, Özgür & Fan, Li-Wu, 2023. "A novel cascade latent heat thermal energy storage system consisting of erythritol and paraffin wax for deep recovery of medium-temperature industrial waste heat," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 265(C).
    13. Shaikh Zishan & Altaf Hossain Molla & Haroon Rashid & Kok Hoe Wong & Ahmad Fazlizan & Molla Shahadat Hossain Lipu & Mohd Tariq & Omar Mutab Alsalami & Mahidur R. Sarker, 2023. "Comprehensive Analysis of Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems for Efficient Energy Harnessing from Unnaturally Generated Wind Sources," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(21), pages 1-18, October.
    14. Yu, Xiaoli & Li, Zhi & Lu, Yiji & Huang, Rui & Roskilly, Anthony Paul, 2019. "Investigation of organic Rankine cycle integrated with double latent thermal energy storage for engine waste heat recovery," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 170(C), pages 1098-1112.
    15. Salman, Muhammad & Long, Xingle & Wang, Guimei & Zha, Donglan, 2022. "Paris climate agreement and global environmental efficiency: New evidence from fuzzy regression discontinuity design," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 168(C).
    16. Tang, Yong & Wang, Zhichao & Zhou, Jinzhi & Zeng, Chao & Lyu, Weihua & Lu, Lin & Yuan, Yanping, 2024. "Experimental study on the performance of packed-bed latent thermal energy storage system employing spherical capsules with hollow channels," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 293(C).
    17. Guo, Yating & Rosland, Anitha & Ishak, Suryati & Muhammad Senan, Mohammad Khair Afham, 2023. "Public spending and natural resources development: A way toward green economic growth in China," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(PB).
    18. Busiswe Skosana & Mukwanga W. Siti & Nsilulu T. Mbungu & Sonu Kumar & Willy Mulumba, 2023. "An Evaluation of Potential Strategies in Renewable Energy Systems and Their Importance for South Africa—A Review," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-27, November.
    19. Xia, Xiaoxia & Liu, Zhipeng & Wang, Zhiqi & Sun, Tong & Zhang, Hualong & Zhang, Sifeng, 2023. "Thermo-economic-environmental optimization design of dual-loop organic Rankine cycle under fluctuating heat source temperature," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 264(C).
    20. Bedoić, Robert & Dorotić, Hrvoje & Schneider, Daniel Rolph & Čuček, Lidija & Ćosić, Boris & Pukšec, Tomislav & Duić, Neven, 2021. "Synergy between feedstock gate fee and power-to-gas: An energy and economic analysis of renewable methane production in a biogas plant," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 173(C), pages 12-23.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:appene:v:362:y:2024:i:c:s030626192400391x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/405891/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.