A Sussex brewery has become the first UK business to trial a new type of heat pump that is claimed can cut emissions by up to 90%.
Hepworth Brewery, based in Pulborough, is using a Greensteam heat pump, developed by Surbiton start-up Futraheat, to deliver low-carbon heat to fuel the brewing process.
Unlike most heat pumps, which deliver hot water up to around 80C, the Futraheat heat pump is said be capable of producing steam up to 130C – vital for the brewing industry and believed to be a first for the UK.
Andy Hepworth, the brewery’s chairman, said: “This pilot project is demonstrating how Hepworth Brewery can adopt innovative technology to switch off our oil boiler and use a reliable new way to recycle our waste heat with minimal emissions.
“The high temperature heat pump from Futraheat will help us cut costs and CO2 and is straightforward to integrate within our existing processes. If this technology were adopted across the whole brewing process, it would reduce our emissions significantly.”
Hepworth Brewery expects the prototype heat pump will reduce the energy consumption and carbon emissions associated with wort boiling by up to 90%, whilst lowering fuel costs by up to 40%, with potential to roll out the technology across the whole brewing process.
Heat, delivered through high temperature steam pipes, is a vital component of brewing, and many other industrial processes, and is usually delivered by boilers running on gas or fuel oil.
With the new system, Hepworth Brewery can now recycle waste vapour from the brewing process, normally vented to atmosphere, and boost it via Futraheat’s heat pump to deliver useful steam back to the brewery at 130C.
Futraheat believes their technology can be applied to many industries beyond brewing. Around 70% of all UK industrial energy demand is for heat, and much of this can be delivered via high-temperature heat pumps, the company says.
The key to the heat pump is a novel, patented turbo compressor, known as TurboClaw, which sits at the heart of the Greensteam system and is said to be able to boost temperatures by up to 60 degrees.
Tom Taylor, chief executive of Futraheat, said: “Heat is a major component of a huge range of industrial processes, from pharmaceuticals to food and drink, and vast amounts of this is delivered by steam.
“Until now, heat pumps have been both unaffordable and unable to deliver heat at the temperature that industry requires. This project demonstrates the technology can now be implemented within a brewery.
“We’re confident it can then be rolled out across a range of industries, in the UK and worldwide.”
The current project has been delivered in partnership with Hepworth Brewery and the Department for Energy Strategy and Net Zero’s Industrial Energy Efficiency Accelerator (IEEA) programme, managed by the Carbon Trust.
Futraheat secured £2m investment in 2023 from backers including the Clean Growth Fund to develop and deploy their next-generation machine, which will incorporate two TurboClaw compressors to deliver heat up to 150 degrees.
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