Dutch consortium receives grant to confirm energy-saving research

A consortium of Dutch groups that includes Nouryon has received a grant to study ways to increase the efficiency of AC motors, which currently account for 40% of global electricity consumption. The consortium, which also includes the Institute for Sustainable Process Technology, Vopak, Semiotic Labs, TPA Adviseurs and the Universiteit Utrecht's Copernicus Institute, will develop algorithms that analyse electrical waveforms with the goal of reducing energy consumption by 15% to 30% without compromising on output.

Frans van den Akker, Director Sustainability at ISPT: “The goal of ISPT is to promote sustainable practices in the process industry. To that end, we will work with asset owners and technology providers on developing both tools and practices that enable the reduction of energy waste. The reality of the global economy also mandates that these technologies improve sustainability without compromising output performance. We believe this project create such a tool: It provides the insights that are required for energy reduction as well as increases in system performance. A win for the environment, for the production manager and for the CFO.”

The research will use the SAM4 condition monitoring solution of Semiotic Labs, a 2018 winner of Nouryon’s Imagine Chemistry innovation challenge. SAM4 measures current and voltage signals to detect developing faults in AC motors and rotating equipment such as pumps, conveyors and compressors up to four months in advance of the fault causing a failure. The motor data has now been reapplied to detect inefficiencies in industrial processes, and can now offer the insights needed to increase electrical asset efficiency by 15-30%, the company said.

Simon Jagers, Founder of Semiotic Labs, said: “Sustainability is a crucial part of modern industry, and our tool will enable organizations to drastically reduce electrical energy consumption. Around 40% of global electrical energy consumption comes from the use of industrial AC motors, and the insights offered by SAM4 can help our clients made a big dent in that number. Together, we can develop technology that helps to reduce the world’s energy consumption in a meaningful way.”

Working alongside partners Vopak and Nouryon, Semiotic Labs is continuously testing new ways to provide even greater efficiency improvement insights.

Marco Waas, Director RD&I and Technology at Nouryon, said: “SAM4 gives our maintenance staff the insights they need to identify which processes in our factory are not running as efficiently as possible. This means we can focus our efficiency improvements on processes where we can make the greatest impact on energy reduction.” The technology, which is part of the company’s Industry 4.0 Program, is initially being tested at several sites in the Netherlands and Germany.

Leo Brand, CIO at Vopak, added: “Sustainability is high on our list of priorities, and the reduction of electricity consumption is a crucial part of that. Integrating SAM4 into our critical processes is an important step in realising our energy efficiency targets.”