18.06.2020
Energietechnik

The Medical Center - University of Freiburg upgrades its thermal power station

WEHRLE-WERK AG based in Emmendingen is supporting the Medical Center – University of Freiburg in modernizing its own thermal power station and increasing its energy efficiency by installing a new steam pressure boiler. WEHRLE developed, manufactured and assembled the new boiler including complete burning system and control technology. The main advantages of the new boiler are its optimized operation and low nitrogen emissions.

Millimeter work: Assembly of a component of the new boiler at the Medical Center –University of Freiburg (Photos: S. Kaltenbach, WEHRLE-WERK AG)
Millimeter work: Assembly of a component of the new boiler at the Medical Center –University of Freiburg (Photos: S. Kaltenbach, WEHRLE-WERK AG)
Millimeter work: Assembly of a component of the new boiler at the Medical Center –University of Freiburg (Photos: S. Kaltenbach, WEHRLE-WERK AG)
 

WEHRLE Energy Technology has been constructing boilers for the Medical Center for almost 60 years. The first boilers were designed for coal firing, followed by heavy oil and gas boilers. In 2011, wood pellet firing was implemented. The oldest of the five boilers of the thermal power station, also built by WEHRLE, has now been replaced after 50 years of operation, making possible another technological change: in addition to the heat supply and power generation by an existing steam turbine, an upstream gas turbine also generates energy, contributing thus to the expansion of the decentralized power supply of the Medical Center.

A total of eight heavy loads was necessary to transport the individual components with a length of 16.5 m and a width of 5.7 m to the Medical Center. They will later be assembled to an entire system of 250 t. The assembly was done within five days: a crane placed the boiler with a weight of 31 t and a height of 16 m into the thermal power station, a work which had to be executed precisely and accurate to the millimeter. The WEHRLE team is currently carrying out the detail assembly and the commissioning, which will probably be completed by the end of November, at the beginning of the heating period.