When tools are valuable
Producing renewable energy in an efficient and competitive way means having know-how, but also modern and efficient laboratories and plants.
In the Ragusa Park there are plants for the separation of the flare gas and compressors to liquefy the CO2 produced. Also essential are the membrane demineralization plant, the carbon dioxide storage, the two absorption chillers, the vehicle washing bay, the 3 mechanical workshops, the electrical and electronic workshop.
These plants, and many others, share common objectives: to work safely, produce at low cost and save energy.
Because energy saving is the largest power plant!
CO2 separation
Produce … savings!
First there was a torch that burned gas. An unusable gas, because it contained too much carbon dioxide. At the same time, wells were dug to extract carbon dioxide: for drinks, fire-fighting systems, metallurgy.
Now we don’t see that torch anymore because we treat that waste gas making it a resource. We produce food carbon dioxide using the leftover waste to power a power plant.
The separation process is copied from nature: potassium carbonate is used in a similar way to the formation of stalactites in caves. To have the chemical separation process, the heat that the power plant itself produces is exploited, which otherwise would be lost.
The maximum production of the plant is 4 million kg of CO2 per year: the needs of Sicily.
CO2 storage
The carbon dioxide produced is filtered and purified until it complies with the restrictive rules of food production. Subsequently it is liquefied through special compressors and refrigeration systems and finally stored in storage tanks ready to be delivered to the user companies that request it.
The CO2 produced inside the plant in addition to being Food Grade E290 falls within the ISBT specification, which is the one required for the use of CO2 in carbonated drinks.