COST-EFFECTIVE WASTE ENERGY UTILIZATION

It does not seem likely that we will ever return to an era of low-cost energy. From now on, we will be paying an ever increasing fraction of our income for energy needs, and hence, at a fixed rate of productivity, our standard of living will be declining. Can we arrest this fraction at some new plateau without depriving ourselves of the beneficial effects of energy uses. No one can give a sure answer to this question. The authors believe, however, that a combination of efforts in both new energy supplies and in energy savings is the most reasonable and profitable approach to the problem. In this article they concentrate only on savings through more effective use of energy that is now wasted; i.e. improved energy productivity. A brief overview of the pattern of recent trends in energy costs and productivity, and of the present state of waste energy utilization, is an appropriate introduction to a review of generic technologies for waste energy utilization, their specific applications, and potential benefits and drawbacks.