Energy conservation insulating materials

Insulation provides other functions in addition to energy conservation. A key role for insulation is safety. It protects personnel from bums and minimizes hot surfaces that could ignite inflammables. It also protects equipment, piping, and contents in event of fire. Thus materials such as mineral wool are sometimes used despite relatively poor thermal quaUties. 

Energy Conservation Conserving energy by reducing the rate of heat transfer is the primary reason for insulating surfaces. Insulation materials that performs satisfactorily in the temperature range of -268 C to 1000°C (-450 F to 1800°F) are widely available. 

Thermal Insulation, properly applied, assures effective operation of process equipment and conserves valuable heat. There is always a wide variety of insulating materials for a given situation and careful consideration must be given to each type so that an intelligent decision may be made. Thermal insulation should be the simplest, most generally accepted, cost-effective method of saving energy immediately available to a plant owner. 

Insulation A procedure to conserve energy by keeping cold processes cold and hot processes hot Glass wood is one example of insulation material. 

Energy Use and Conservation. A variety of materials are needed for high performance thermal insulation, particularly as components of nuclear reactors. Replacements for asbestos fibers are needed for components such as reactor core flooring, plumbing, and packaging. The fibers must be very resistant to high temperatures with outstanding dimensional stabiHty and resistance to compression. 

The second requirement is to conserve energy. This is a factor in summer since winter insulation is done by other means. Many reflective pigments are in use with special emphasis on metal flakes which are becoming increasingly popular either as an additive to the roofing material or as a component of the roof surface coating. 

Hot lines and equipment are usually thermally insulated to conserve energy and to ensure safe service at temperatures above the oxidation limits of the materials. Care must be taken to ensure that the process stream chemistry is either nonoxidizing or that the process-side surface is protected by an insulating or refractory liner. In such cases, the limiting factor will be the availability of a code maximum allowable stress. 

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