Test Your Knowledge: How Much Fuel is Burned to Raise Steam?

Fuel is used for many things across the United States by both manufacturers and consumers. What percentage of fuel burned by U.S. manufacturers is consumed to raise steam?
  1. 45%
  2. 38%
  3. 33%
  4. 27%
The answer… 1. 45% – Over 45% of all the fuel burned by U.S. manufacturers is consumed to raise steam. Steam is used to heat raw materials and treat semi-finished products. It is also a power source for equipment, as well as for building heat and electricity generation. But steam is not free. It costs approximately $18 billion annually to feed the boilers generating steam. Many manufacturing facilities can recapture energy through the installation of more efficient steam equipment and processes. A typical industrial facility can realize steam savings of 20% by improving their steam system. If steam system improvement were adopted industry-wide, the benefits would be $4 billion in fuel cost reduction and 32 million metric tons of emission reductions. Source: U.S. Department of Energy. Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Test Your Knowledge: How Much Fuel is Burned to Raise Steam?