2022 Horizons Symposium

Alan Rossiter, PhD, P.E.
Executive Director, External Relations & Educational Program Development
UH Energy, University of Houston

Dr. Alan Rossiter is UH Energy’s Executive Director, External Relations & Educational Program Development.

Prior to joining UH Energy, Dr. Rossiter served in a variety of engineering and management positions with two major chemical companies, Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) in England, and Saudi Basic Industries (SABIC) in Saudi Arabia. He also worked for the industrial energy efficiency and waste minimization consulting firm Linnhoff March in the US, as a senior consultant, operations manager, and interim president. Later he ran his own independent consulting firm.

Dr. Rossiter obtained his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in chemical engineering from the University of Cambridge. He is a licensed professional engineer (Texas).

He is also the lead author of Energy Management and Efficiency for the Process Industries (AIChE/ Wiley, 2015), and the contributing editor for Chemical Processing’s award-winning monthly Energy Saver column.

ABSTRACT

In many industrial facilities, most of the heat provided to the processes is ultimately rejected to the ambient environment. A large part of this loss is inherent in the physics and chemistry of the processes – most significantly, the Second Law of Thermodynamics. However, the recovery or elimination of industrial waste heat presents a huge opportunity for energy savings. In this presentation, we will examine the typical characteristics of heat flow through oil refining and chemical processes, and identify areas where improved heat recovery and better energy utilization can lead to significant energy savings. This includes the impact of enhanced heat transfer options, emerging technologies for energy conversion and decarbonization, and alternative unit operations for the processes.