Heating System

[chigss]

Which one is most preferable heating system for 2.4 Million Liter Bio diesel Storage tank?

We need to maintian +25 Deg C.and lowest ambient temperature is -47 Deg C.

Thanks

 

[MintJulep]

Let's see....

You have a tank full of combustible fuel, and you need heat.

I'm gonna' say electric resistance heat is the way to go.

 

[djack77494]

There is no "prefered" heating system. If you have LP steam in the vicinity, it would probably be the first choice as an energy source. Is that even what you're asking, or do you want to know about configuration choices; e.g. bayonet heater, external, circulating heat exchanger, etc. Now that I'm thinking about your ambient temperature, electric is probably your only energy source. I say go electric.

 

[Hoxton]

All down to economics and practicalities.
Some good advice above.
Others:
Burn some biodiesel to fuel a boiler (steam or hot water.

Run a diesel engine genset on biodiesel and use the jacket and exhaust heat to warm the biodiesel. Then sell the electricity to your utility.

I guess you want to stop the biodiesel "waxing out" and going solid. This is a common problem! A similar problem is found in large diesel power stations fuelled by heavey fuel oil (HFO). The pour point (below which it effectively solid) can be around 30C. Solution is to either heat the tanks with electric heaters or put boilers on the engine exhausts and generate steam which is circulated through heating coils in the tanks. Electric heating is simpler than steam, but you have to look at the cost of the electric power used against the maintenance costs of the steam system.

Don'f forget to lagg the tank and pipes!

 

[Unotec]

Use your own bio-diesel to generate heat. If you are creating bio-diesel, I do not think you would like to burn fossil fuels for it, would you now?

<<A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a true friend
will be sitting beside you saying ” Damn that was fun!” - Unknown>>

 

[davsy]

Biodiesel is too expensive to burn on site. For most producers it is only viable because of subsidies such as the $1 per gallon that the US government is currently giving out. If you burn it on site you lose that $1 per gallon straight away add to that the cost of boiler fuel, even at todays prices, is below the cost of production of biodiesel so you would lose both ways.

 

[Transient1]

Davsy,


Is it really cheaper to buy electricity for heat rather than generate your own electric heat + waste heat from the generator? Why produce a fuel that is more expensive than commerical gasoline?

 

[Unotec]

Its called subsidy (aka taxpayers money)

<<A good friend will bail you out of jail, but a true friend
will be sitting beside you saying ” Damn that was fun!” - Unknown>>

 

[davsy]

unotec has it pretty much spot on. US tax payers money is keeping the struggling Biodiesel industry alive. Struggling because of the price and availability of vegetable oil.

Without the subsidies Biodiesel would be selling at a higher price than regular Diesel. It just does not make sense to burn it on site.

The US government give $1 per gallon subsidy at the moment which is being exploited all over the world. (the US tax payer is subsidising my diesel fuel over here in the UK, go figure)

 

[25362]

And don't forget good thermal insulation.

 

[gmax137]

Why don't you do the taxpayers a favor: delay completion of the design until the subsidy ends next year (during the food riots).