FIRESTONE WALKER BREWING COMPANY (HENCEFORTH CALLED THE COMPANY), PASO ROBLES, CALIFORNIA, OWNS A 1 MILLION BARREL (BBL) BREWERY THAT REQUIRES UP TO 5 MW OF PROCESS HEAT IN FORM OF SATURATED STEAM. FIRESTONE WALKER BREWERY HAS SET A GOAL OF REDUCING CARBON EMISSIONS BY 50% FOR OUR 1 MILLION BBL BREWERY. SOME ASPECTS OF THE PROPOSED DECARBONIZATION PROJECT INCLUDE (BUT NOT LIMITED TO):
• CONSTRUCTION OF A PARABOLIC TROUGH THERMAL POWER PLANT TO PARTLY COVER THE HEAT DEMAND.
• CONSTRUCTION OF STEAM ACCUMULATOR STORAGE SYSTEM
• BALANCE OF PLANT (BOP), PIPING, HEAT EXCHANGER, PIPING TO DELIVERY POINT
• HYBRIDIZATION OF CST PLANT WITH HEAT PUMPS (OPTIONAL)
• USE OF CONCENTRATED SOLAR THERMAL ENERGY AND THERMAL ENERGY STORAGE TO REPLACE NATURAL GAS CONSUMPTION, AS WELL AS REDUCTION OF CO2 EMISSIONS.
THE CST PLANT WILL BE IN THE SOUTHERN OUTSKIRTS OF PASO ROBLES, CALIFORNIA. THE ANNUAL SOLAR RADIATION AVAILABLE ON SITE IS 2,565 KWH/M²/ANNUM. CURRENTLY, PROCESS HEAT SUPPLY IS PROVIDED BY GAS BOILERS, WITH AN EXPECTED HEAT DEMAND IS 13.7 GWHTH / 46,000 MMBTU. THE DESIRED TEMPERATURE OF THE SATURATED STEAM AT INTERFACE IS 165 °C / 330 °F, CONDENSATE RETURN IS EXPECTED TO BE AT 82 °C / 180 °F BUT WILL BE REVISED DURING THE PROJECT. A PLOT OF 11 HA / 27.1 ACRES HAS BEEN CONSIDERED FOR THE CST PLANT BUT MAY BE LOCATED CLOSER TO THE BREWERY.
INTEGRATION OF HEAT PUMPS TO THE SOLAR THERMAL SYSTEM IS ALSO PLANNED. THE INTEGRATION PROCESS INVOLVES CONNECTING THE COLLECTORS OR TES OR WASTE HEAT FROM THE BREWERY AS THE HEAT SOURCE FOR THE HEAT PUMP. THE HEATED FLUID (WATER AT RELATIVELY LOW TEMPERATURE) ENTERS THE HEAT PUMP, WHERE THE TEMPERATURE IS FURTHER INCREASED THROUGH THE COMPRESSION AND EXPANSION OF A REFRIGERANT. THE FINAL OUTPUT IS HOT WATER OR STEAM AT A HIGHER TEMPERATURE SUPPLIED TO THE HEAT SINK (HEAT CONSUMERS) THAN AT THE HEAT SOURCE. ONE OF THE ADVANTAGES OF THIS COMBINED SYSTEM IS ITS ABILITY TO OPERATE CONTINUOUSLY, EVEN DURING PERIODS OF LOW SOLAR RADIATION. THE HEAT PUMP COMPENSATES FOR VARIATIONS IN SOLAR ENERGY AVAILABILITY, ENSURING A CONSISTENT AND RELIABLE HEAT SUPPLY FOR BREWING OPERATIONS. A CASCADED HEAT PUMP SYSTEM IS A STRATEGY TO INCREASE THE OVERALL COP, IMPROVE SYSTEM EFFICIENCY AND OBTAIN HIGH TEMPERATURE OUTPUTS. IN A CASCADED SYSTEM, EACH HEAT PUMP OPERATES AT DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE LEVELS, AND THE HEAT REJECTED BY ONE HEAT PUMP BECOMES THE HEAT SOURCE FOR THE NEXT ONE. THIS APPROACH IS PARTICULARLY USEFUL WHEN DEALING WITH TEMPERATURE LIFTS THAT A SINGLE HEAT PUMP MIGHT STRUGGLE WITH. EACH HEAT PUMP IN THE CASCADE IS DESIGNED TO OPERATE WITHIN A SPECIFIC TEMPERATURE RANGE. BY STAGING THE HEAT PUMPS BASED ON TEMPERATURE LEVELS, THE SYSTEM CAN BETTER MATCH THE TEMPERATURE REQUIREMENTS OF THE APPLICATION. THIS IS CRUCIAL BECAUSE HIGHER TEMPERATURE LIFTS GENERALLY LEAD TO LOWER COPS, AND USING MULTIPLE HEAT PUMPS ALLOWS FOR BETTER EFFICIENCY AT DIFFERENT TEMPERATURE STAGES.
THE CRITICAL PATH STEPS TO ACHIEVE THE 50-90% REDUCTION IN CARBON DIOXIDE GENERATION IS:
• PROJECT OUTLINE
O BASELINE ANALYSIS OF ENERGY USE
O OUTLINE POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS TO OFFSET NATURAL GAS USE
O DETERMINE FEASIBLE APPLICATIONS OF SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGIES
O SITE SURVEY TO CONFIRM LOCATION OF SOLAR THERMAL APPLICATIONS
• PLANNING AND APPROVALS
O LOCAL, STATE APPROVAL
O OUTLINE CDFW REQUIREMENTS
O NEPA APPROVAL
• BUDGETARY ANALYSIS
O OBTAIN BUDGETARY PROPOSALS TO COMPLETE SCOPE OF WORK
• LAUNCH EPC ACTIVITIES
O ASSIGN PROJECT ENGINEERS
O COMPLETE PROJECT ENGINEERING DOCUMENTS
O AWARD EQUIPMENT CONTRACTS
O DETERMINE CONTRACTING COMPANIES
• CONSTRUCTION, INSTALLATION, COMMISSIONING, START-UP AND TESTING
• PROJECT CLOSE-OUT
O EVALUATE PROJECT REPORTING METHODOLOGIES$7,486,800
· FY2025 · Department of Energy