The K-12 Project 3rd National Conference On Sustainable Chemistry Milan, 10th December 2015 Federchimica Auditorium K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 0
K12 - PU Disruptive technology to dramatically improve Energy Efficiency of Household Appliances LIFE13 ENV IT 1238 10 December 2015 Vanni Parenti - Dow Italia LIFE+ Project K-12: LIFE+ Project K-12: Enhanced Insulation Technology for the Refrigerator of the Future offering Energy Savings and Carbon Footprint Reduction With the contribution of the LIFE financial instrument of the European Community K-12 CONFIDENTIAL
The K-12 Project Background The domestic household sector is one of the largest consumers of electrical energy in • the EU, consuming around 30% of the total electrical energy supply, distributed over 140 million households The development of new technologies and the adoption of the Energy label have • helped to reduce the energy consumption of individual electrical devices but the increase number and time they are in use resulted in increased energy consumption increase number and time they are in use resulted in increased energy consumption Cold appliances - refrigerators and freezers - accounted for 14.5% of household • energy consumption in 2010. Currently, most households still use old, energy- inefficient cold appliances K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 2
The K-12 Project Objectives The LIFE+ K-12 project aims to demonstrate the feasibility and effectiveness of an • innovative Polyurethane (PU) technology offering significantly improved thermal insulation and, thus, energy efficiency of households cold appliances, contributing to the European Community’s goals of creating an energy efficient economy while mitigating the threat of global warming Manufacturing adaptations will include the design of a new injection equipment and Manufacturing adaptations will include the design of a new injection equipment and • • innovative refrigerators designs Product Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) will be used to quantify the environmental • impact of a potential market introduction of the innovative technology in terms of reduced energy consumption and carbon footprint K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 3
The K12 Project Expected Results A new refrigerator manufacturing process demonstrated at pilot scale with optimized • foaming parameters and new injection equipment A 25-30% improvement in foam thermal conductivity performance of the new PU • foam, compared to the current best in class solutions available today A 15-20% reduction in the energy consumption of cold appliances, with respect to • the current best in class labelled A+/A++/A+++ Demonstrated feasibility of applying the novel insulation material with a zero ODP • (Ozone Depletion Potential) and minimum GWP (Global Warming Potential) K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 4
K-12 Project Partners Dow Italia is owned by The Dow Chemical Company, global leading • chemical company. Dow connects chemistry and innovation with sustainability to help address many of the world's biggest challenges Whirlpool Europe and Whirlpool R&D are belonging to the Whirlpool • Corp. the world’s No.1 producer of white good household appliances Corp. the world’s No.1 producer of white good household appliances Afros is part of the CANNON Group, an international, independent • group, world leader in PU equipment providing a range of industries world-wide with dedicated to engineering solutions. K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 5
Other LIFE+ Projects of K-12 Partners LIFE , “ The Financial Instrument for the Environment”, is a program of the European • Commission coordinated by the Environment Department that has been one of the main sources of funding for demonstration projects exploring ways to facilitate the implementation of EU climate mitigation policy and legislation throughout the Union Other LIFE projects run by Dow , Whirlpool and Afros are: • K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 6
The Appliance Industry Challenges Energy Cost K-12 Solution: Materials Equipment Environment Implementation Design K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 7
K-12 Refrigerators Why Polyurethane? Comparison of thermal efficiency: 2.5 cm rigid PU foam 4.0 cm poli-styrene 4.5 cm fiber-glass 5 cm cork 12 cm wood 40 cm bricks K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 8
Household Appliances within European EuP K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 9
Energy Label EU market uptake K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 10
CO2 Concentration in the Atmosphere Concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have now touched 400 part-per-million and greenhouse gas pollution, but there is no question that the world continues to inexorably climb toward higher levels of greenhouse gases concentrations: at present pace, the world could reach 450 ppm in a few short decades. Source: World Meteorological Organization – UK’s Met Office (November 2015) K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 11
What will global annual emissions of GHG be in 2030? The European Union, United States and China collectively produced 45% of global annual emissions of GHG in 2010 Source: ESRC Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy - Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment (May 2015) K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 12
Energy Efficiency has a key role in Abating and Managing Climate Change Stabilizing GHGs concentrations in the atmosphere at sustainable levels is key • Strong reductions in global GHG emissions are needed • Energy-efficiency is the key response strategy for industry, the key in next decades • Potential for energy efficiency improvement in there • Continuous innovation is key for further bridging the gap between old, non-efficient • Energy-using-Products and new generations Strategic energy management is essential to recognize and realize the promise of • energy efficiency K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 13
The Household Refrigerator stucture Rigid polyurethane foam is a closed-cell thermoset plastic polymer having the best insulation properties In addition to the low thermal conductivity, rigid polyurethane foam is stable and durable. Thermal insulation with closed cells rigid polyurethane foam conserves resources, saves energy and has no significant emission to the environment. K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 14
How a refrigerator is injected with PU foam? Most conventional injection technology: Most conventional injection technology: Injection from the compressor side–door up K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 15
PU Foam Thermal Conductivity l Foam = l gas + l solid + l radiative K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 16
PU foam insulation relative contribution INTACT CELL INTACT CELL WINDOW WINDOW Closed cells PU foam Fine cells enhance insulation PU cell structure Radiative 13% Solid 20% Gas 67% K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 17
How far can the PU foam Thermal Conductivity be reduced? Smaller cell size • Lower foam density • Low thermal conductivity (k) of the gas chosen as blowing agent • Cell gas mixture with high % low k gas vs. CO 2 and Air • however, however, combination of all these options must be considered, for example Reduced density will decrease the solid conduction contribution, but will also • increase the radiation contribution due to thinner cell walls K-12 Project is active in all these aspects and works on reducing all heat transfer and thermal contributions to maximize energy saving K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 18
Life Cycle Assessment - LCA GHGs ENERGY ACID GAS Option A Option B Option A Option B Option B Option A Climate Change Water Scarcity • Materials Land Use Energy Demand • Energy & Water during the use phase • Manufacturing and Operations Acidification Ozone Depletion • Product Performance • End of Life Eutrophication • Consumables Smog Creation • … Renewability Etc …. K-12 CONFIDENTIAL 19
K12 - PU Disruptive technology to dramatically improve Energy Efficiency of Household Appliances LIFE13 ENV IT 1238 10 December 2015 Vanni Parenti - Dow Italia Thank You With the contribution of the LIFE financial instrument of the European Community K-12 CONFIDENTIAL
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