Towards framework development for benchmarking energy efficiency in foundation industries: a case study of granulation process

The manufacturing sector depends mainly on the foundation industries which have a major contribution to the country’s economy. These foundation industries include glass, metals, ceramics, cement, paper, and chemical sectors that support the demands of our modern lives. On the other hand, these industries are energy intensive. Energy requirements in foundation industries can be improved by benchmarking and comparing the actual energy consumption of individual processes with their theoretical minimum value. In this study, an energy taxonomy approach has been used to identify the elements responsible for energy consumption in the granulation process. Bond’s law has been used to calculate the theoretical minimum energy consumption of one such individual process, i.e., granulation—a common process among the foundation industries which accounts for an average of 50% of the total energy consumption. A framework has also been developed that can be used by foundation industries to benchmark their energy efficiency and that provides an insight into the practical and theoretical potential for reducing their energy requirements.