Germany has set ambitious goals for the energy revolution: The proportion of renewable energy relative to overall energy consumption should be 80 per cent by 2050. With the expansion of wind energy, photovoltaics and other regenerative energy sources as well as the increasing electrification of society, the world of business, politics and science are facing a major challenge: the efficient and sustainable storage of locally generated excess energy so that it can be fed into the energy grid during peak times. One highly promising energy efficiency concept is “Power to Gas”, whereby methane is obtained from wind or solar energy by way of electrolysis and methanation. Energy is then stored in gas form and recovered when required. Methanation could also accelerate the rise of gas-powered vehicles in the automotive sector, while the methane required to fuel the vehicles could be produced in an environmentally compatible way. Researchers all over the world are working at full speed to design a technology that is simpler and more relevant in terms of energy efficiency. The Max Planck Institute for Dynamics of Complex Technical Systems in Magdeburg is a leading organization that has already been active in this field of research for seven years. To carry out work in its pilot plant, the institute uses a LAUDA heat transfer system that must meet the very specific requirements of the researchers.

High-precision, rapid cooling required

LAUDA Heating and Cooling Systems, which is the industrial division of temperature equipment manufacturer LAUDA, plans and manufactures customized constant temperature systems exactly according to customer requirements. A type ITH 350 heat transfer system was developed for the Max Planck Institute. The system is used to control the temperature of a reactor. The LAUDA system must be able to provide cooling of 100 Kelvin per minute without falling below the end point. It must therefore cool down quickly but must not fall below a certain temperature point and endanger the actual process. This challenge also posed problems for the LAUDA engineers because heat transfer systems are usually designed for constant temperature control. The research carried out at the Max Planck Institute requires a system that cools extremely quickly.

Cooling from 340 °C to 150 °C in minutes – with extreme precision

The methanation reaction generates a great deal of heat and high temperatures that may damage the reactor, or more importantly, the catalyst. Up to now, this kind of process was typically started up slowly one time and then run constantly for several weeks. Project manager Jens Bremer explains what the researchers are aiming to achieve: "First we are attempting to identify how dynamically this process can be arranged and then develop some basic concepts for new operating strategies and reactor designs. We have already obtained some initial promising results based on computer-assisted calculations and now wish to use the pilot system to verify these results”. Temperature control requirements are correspondingly high. The LAUDA heat transfer system is more than capable of delivering the required precision. “The performance and dynamics of the reactor are primarily determined by the cooling of the reactor. Rapid temperature control enables a flexible response to external influences, such as a decrease in the hydrogen supply, without having to shut down the reactor”, explains Jens Bremer.

During the process, the reactor is heated electrically to 340 °C. Once a defined temperature is reached, an exothermic reaction is triggered and the system must then be rapidly cooled to 150 °C. An electronic valve used in normal situations that serves as a regulating device would be much too slow for this particular application. It may be possible to use the valve to adjust the cooling capacity, depending on the actuating signal. If the system is cooled with cooling water, the cooling capacity for normal cooling tasks is limited to preserve the materials in the event of significant temperature differences. In this case, a rapid opening is required to reach the necessary cooling speed without stressing the material too much. LAUDA engineers have therefore developed a pneumatic 3-way valve that opens in only 2 seconds to ensure that the heat carrier is cooled at more than 150 °C per minute.

The heat transfer system incorporates two thermostatic circuits. While the first circuit controls the temperature in a buffer vessel, the second circuit controls the temperature in the test setup of the Max Planck Institute. Both circuits use the same medium and are connected to one another via the media storage unit. One additional customer requirement for the system was that the heat carrier could be used at temperatures of up to 350 °C. LAUDA therefore selected a thermal oil capable of satisfying the demanding requirements of the material.

Specific customer requirements fulfilled

LAUDA developed and designed the special heat transfer system according to the requirements of the Max Planck Institute. The restricted spatial conditions were already taken into consideration during the development phase on the computer. The system had to be enclosed in a special safety dome, which made it necessary to mount the control cabinets on the side. As requested by the customer, some of the nozzles are located on the underside of the device. The LAUDA system was sent to Magdeburg for assembly in two parts, which were lifted into the safety glass enclosure by a crane.

The heat transfer system for methanation research was the second system LAUDA has delivered to the Max Planck Institute. The institute is more than satisfied with the services provided by the temperature control manufacturer: “We received outstanding consultation and customer care all the way from the initial concept design phase to final on-site installation. No other manufacturer was able to provide such flexibility for our specific situation”, explains project manager Jens Bremer.

LAUDA and GFL present together for the first time at the Forum LABO.

A few days ago, the Forum LABO marked the end of a successful trade fair appearance for LAUDA, the world's leading manufacturer of temperature control units and systems. For more than 60 years, the name LAUDA has stood for professional and reliable temperature control in the laboratory. France is one of the most important markets for LAUDA. The family business founded its first subsidiary there in 2005 and has been operating in the neighbouring country with steadily growing success ever since.

At the Forum LABO, LAUDA presented its broad portfolio of temperature control units for laboratories, research & development and production in a new design. With the LAUDA PRO, the user has at his disposal a scalable device line with a remarkable overall concept that is used in a large number of industries. The circulation thermostats for professional applications in test benches, reactors, climate chambers or distillation plants in the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotech, mineral oil, automotive or electrical engineering industries enable temperature control from -90 to 250 °C and convince with dynamic temperature changes and a compact design.

With the new Integral line of devices, LAUDA is presenting for the first time in Paris a completely new development of powerful process thermostats with an intuitive operating concept that, among other things, allows control via mobile terminals. With its completely redesigned exterior, the thermostat also attracted a lot of attention from visitors to the trade fair.

In addition to the LAUDA temperature control units, a selection of laboratory units from GFL also awaited the trade visitors. LAUDA acquired the German premium manufacturer for laboratory technology from Burgwedel at the beginning of the year. For the first time, both companies presented their joint portfolio under one roof, including distillation apparatuses, shakers and water baths. The President and CEO of LAUDA, Dr. Gunther Wobser, who visited the Forum LABO and the LAUDA stand, was delighted with the positive response at the trade fair. »The French market is an important pillar for LAUDA. I am therefore delighted that Forum LABO has stabilised as an exchange platform with our French customers and dealers.«

The F-Gas Regulation forces plant operators to rethink their approach. The industrial division of LAUDA supplies future-proof systems.

The current EU regulation on fluorinating greenhouse gases has been in force since 2015. This means that it has been decided to gradually restrict the quantities of partially fluorinated hydrocarbons available on the market until 2030. Operators and manufacturers of refrigeration systems are now clearly aware of the consequences of this legislation. Not only has the availability of traditional refrigerants fallen significantly, but the demand for future-proof systems using natural refrigerants has also risen significantly. LAUDA Heating and Cooling Systems, the industrial division of the world market leader for temperature control units and systems, has been working intensively on this topic for more than five years - and recently manufactured a process cooling system with a two-stage cooling cascade and natural refrigerants for temperatures down to -60 °C for a biopharmaceutical company in Germany.

LAUDA HKS systems for freezing processes

The globally active customer, one of the largest research-based pharmaceutical companies in Germany, has ordered a process cooling system from LAUDA Heating and Cooling Systems. The system is used for so-called Freeze & Thaw processes, in which active ingredients are deep-frozen in large tanks of up to 200 l volume and shipped for further processing. The process cooling system must therefore be able to cool down to -60 °C with high precision.

In close consultation with the customer all specifications of the process cooling system were defined and the individual components were designed during the pre-engineering process. The customer's factory specifications also had to be taken into account, such as the use of instrumentation from certain manufacturers. The process cooling system is designed for two tanks, each with a cooling capacity of 2.2 kW. The system is also equipped with a volume flow control system to make the entire process reproducible for the customer and to safeguard it at all sites. In order to achieve the required working temperature of -60 °C, the LAUDA engineers rely on a two-stage cascade system. Two interconnected and coordinated compressor systems provide the required temperature by the evaporator of the first circuit cooling the condenser of the second circuit. This intelligent combination of several cooling circuits allows low temperatures down to -90 °C to be reached.

Flammable refrigerants require special sensor technology

In order to guarantee future-proof operation, the plant for the pharmaceutical company is operated with natural refrigerants. LAUDA uses flammable refrigerants such as ethane and prophene for this purpose. The use of these gases in turn places special demands on the system. From a filling quantity of 150 g combustible gas, the use of a special gas sensor is mandatory, which monitors the tightness of the refrigeration circuits and switches off the process cooling system in case of danger. In addition, the entire refrigeration system is equipped with a ventilated housing to keep air exchange as low as possible. In the event of a leak, a fan ensures sufficient negative pressure and reliable ventilation to the outside. LAUDA heating and cooling systems only use components and safety technology approved for the refrigerant in question, strictly in accordance with DIN EN 378.

Each step of the project was closely coordinated with the client. The use of natural refrigerants does not have any disadvantages for the customer. Refrigerants from the range of hydrocarbons are inexpensive and, from an energy point of view, often more efficient than conventional F-gases or synthetically produced substitutes. For the engineers and designers of LAUDA heating and cooling systems, process cooling systems of this kind are an important step into the future. The demand for industrial solutions with natural refrigerants will continue to rise as the shortage of traditional refrigerants increases.