Waste Heat to Electricity - New Opportunities

Saskatoon Light and Power's Turboexpander Project converts waste heat into electricity - effortlessly.

A turboexpander is a turbine through which a high pressure gas is expanded (i.e. its pressure is reduced). Energy is produced in the process. That energy, which will otherwise be lost, can be captured and used to drive a generator.

When the pressure of the natural gas is reduced, it is accompanied by a drop in temperature. Waste heat can be used to pre-heat the natural gas before the pressure and temperature reduction through the turboexpander.

The Turboexpander Power Generator produces power with zero emissions by recovering pressure energy and waste heat energy that would otherwise go un-used.

The Hill Online Publishes Center for Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) White Paper on LNG Uses (February 14, 2011)

Turboexpanders provide one more use for LNG. Every shipment of liquefied natural gas offers the opportunity to convert waste heat into electrical energy with zero emissions.

This is also a process for building very high-efficiency solar thermal power stations. Very little thermal energy is un-used.