High energy electrical connections in an aluminium smelter.
Energy efficient electrical connections
CSIRO offers consulting and training services for maximising efficiency of high current electrical connections used in primary metal production industries.
- 18 October 2010 | Updated 14 October 2011
The cost of energy losses
Industrial high current electrical conductors and connections are not perfectly efficient electrical contacts, and hence are a source of energy loss.
In aluminium smelting, power losses of approximately 10 per cent occur through bus bar and associated electrical connections.
However, significant cost savings can be achieved by improving the energy efficiency of electrical contacts.
A 20mV saving across all seven Australasian aluminium smelters would save enough electricity to power all the houses in a city the size of:
- Gladstone, Queensland
- Mildura, Victoria, or
- Invercargill, New Zealand.
Energy savings can produce aggregate cost savings of more than A$1 million per year for a smelter.
Reducing industrial carbon footprints
This service is a part of CSIRO’s strategy for carbon mitigation via technologies which reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Reducing power losses is the most effective way to reduce industrial carbon emissions associated with electricity use. This is especially so in countries which are highly reliant on coal-fired electricity plants.
The CSIRO suite of services
CSIRO has introduced a suite of advisory services which identify energy saving solutions for industries which use high current electrical connections:
- Specialist engineering design and review—purpose-designed solutions which provide maximum electrical efficiency to existing problems
- Process audits—detailed review of existing plant component design and process conditions
- Validation support—identification of improvements which offer the 'best return' to process conditions identified in the audit
- Specialist training for operational decision-makers to improve plant efficiency.
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Service |
Content |
Deliverables |
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Specialist engineering design and review |
Design and modification, providing a tailored solution to an identified problem |
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Process audits |
Detailed review of existing plant design and process conditions Summary report with recommendations for tailored process improvements and assessment of potential impact on voltage and greenhouse gas emissions |
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Validation support |
Verification of possible benefits for implementation, via a targeted campaign of precise measurements Assessment of benefits of each energy-saving opportunity identified in the Process Audit, conducted as a separate project |
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Specialist training |
Intensive training seminars for operational managers (crew leaders, process specialists, reduction line management, R&D support staff) |
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Fast facts
- CSIRO offers consulting and training services for maximising efficiency of high current electrical connections used in primary metal production
- The service offers considerable cost savings to energy-intensive industries such as aluminium, zinc and copper smelters
