Reusing wasted heat a ‘huge opportunity’ for businesses

Reusing wasted heat across UK industry could significantly cut costs and boost competitiveness for businesses, according to a new report.

The Royal Society study said that industrial heating accounts for around 14% of UK emissions, yet approximately half of the energy used in UK industry is lost as waste heat.

Developing systems to capture, store and reuse the waste could also accelerate progress towards net zero.

The report proposes an approach to thermal energy efficiency based on heat cascades, where high temperature waste heat is captured at source and reused at progressively lower temperatures.

Professor Andy Woods, lead author of the report, said: “If the UK is serious about reaching net zero, dealing with the vast amounts of industrial waste heat needs to be integrated into decarbonisation strategies now, and not as an afterthought. As industry makes the switch from fossil fuels to cleaner alternatives, we have a huge window of opportunity to integrate systems to capture and reuse industrial waste heat into future infrastructure.”