New industrial solutions developed with support of public funding could yield carbon savings of more than 40 million tonnes. A new report from The Carbon Trust has highlighted four initiatives which demonstrate this potential.
As the UK looks to live up to its net zero obligations, addressing the impact of industrial carbon release on the environment is essential. Funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero under its Net Zero Innovation Portfolio (NZIP), the IEEA backs industrial-scale demonstrations of novel technologies with the potential to reduce energy consumption, maximise resource efficiency and cut carbon emissions.
The third and fourth phases of the IEEA have now been delivered by consulting firm The Carbon Trust, in partnership with Jacobs and Innovate UK Business Connect. According to the results published by The Carbon Trust, the projects have demonstrated innovative solutions to increase resource and energy efficiency in the UK’s industrial sector, with the potential to save 4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent over 10 years – or the equivalent of the annual CO2 emissions from the UK’s largest gas fired power station in 2023.
Paul McKinney, associate director at the Carbon Trust and programme manager of the IEEA said, “The sheer range of sectors covered, from food and chemicals to metals and construction, and the variety of technologies demonstrated from efficient plant cleaning and heat recovery to advanced sensors, AI and robotics clearly shows that there is no shortage of resource and energy efficiency technologies being developed to help industry on its Net Zero journey.”
The firm noted four examples from a range of demonstration projects – which The Carbon Trust said “showcased the potential for new innovative technologies to reduce energy and resource use in industry” – the third largest emitting sector in the UK, which currently accounts for the equivalent of around 48 million tonnes of CO2 per year.
Project Plan B was delivered by Colas in partnership with the Salvation Army. This saw a system process over 182,000 kg of textile waste by converting post-industrial polyester waste into high-quality recycled polyester (rPET) pellets – showing the potential for a viable UK-based fibre-to-fibre textile recycling solution. The project has demonstrated innovative thermo-mechanical extrusion recycling technology to tackle textile waste sourced from donation centres and industrial waste streams and produce processed polyester pellets that retain much of the original material’s integrity, making them suitable for textiles and rigid plastics.
David Ogden, Executive Director Asset and Maintenance at Colas noted, “We were delighted to bring a new in-situ recycling technique to the UK, breaking the mould and helping the sector deliver its collective decarbonisation targets. It was great to collaborate with our clients and industry stakeholders, as part of the IEEA, to introduce this exciting new process and learn together how different solutions can be demonstrated, adopted and scaled within the UK Highways sector.”
Luxus’ Odour Control Accelerator meanwhile was said to have “significantly reduced odour and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in recycled polymers” through large-scale production of Odour-Extraction (ODEX) compound. Odours, and the volatile organic compounds responsible for them, are one of the largest barriers to using recycled polymer, particularly in post-consumer waste (PCW) – and this progress ought to be beneficial when pushing for future regulations increasing closed-loop recycling.
Braydon Koss, sustainability and project lead at Luxus said, “We were excited to be part of the IEEA. This new technology will aid in developing high quality polymer grades to be used within multiple industries allowing for an increased volume of PCW used in products, not only reducing the need for virgin polymer, but decreasing carbon emissions and helping companies meet the upcoming regulations for sustainability.”
APRIL Robotics Cooking Cell involved a robotic food processing system, which could fully automate soup and sauce cooking operations, designed and developed to adapt to individual customer requirements. According to The Carbon Trust, carbon savings of up to 75% were demonstrated through the IEEA project, by using developer OAL’s steam infusion technology, that optimised energy use for cooking and cleaning, requires less cleaning water and improved product yield from 90 to 98% in trials.
Jake Norman, managing director at OAL, remarked, “This project has shown how advanced robotics can transform core processes like soup and sauce production, improving energy efficiency, reducing waste and increasing yield. Through the IEEA programme, we’ve gained valuable insight into the carbon footprint of food manufacturing and a clear pathway for scalable, intelligent automation across the sector.”
4T2 Sensors finally developed a sensor-detection technology to optimise the cleaning of process pipework in the drinks industry, reducing water, energy and chemical use. Demonstrated at Diageo’s Leven site which bottles some of the world’s most famous spirit brands, the technology can deploy “real-time monitoring of fluid properties to replace time-based cleaning cycles”, according to the report. Roll-out across the site could save “1.5 million litres of water, along with energy reductions and improved production uptime”. 4T2’s sensor technology has recently been licensed to the world’s largest Clean-In-Place (CIP) system and chemical supplier, which is expected to lead to widespread adoption.
Sam Scutt, COO at 4T2 Sensors concluded, “Participating in the IEEA programme enabled us to demonstrate how real-time fluid monitoring using electrical impedance spectroscopy can transform Clean-In-Place processes, saving water and boosting production. The support from IEEA was instrumental in validating our technology and accelerating its path to commercial deployment across multiple sectors.”
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