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Using & Saving Energy

In Industry

Energy Ant

More energy is consumed for industry and manufacturing than for any other purpose. What industries use more energy — refining, chemical, paper, or metal industries?

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From http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyexplained/uses/manufacture.html

The United States is a highly industrialized country. Industry accounts for about one-third of the energy used in the country.

There are many different uses and a variety of different energy sources used in the industrial sector. One main use is as boiler fuel, which means producing heat that is transferred to the boiler vessel to generate steam or hot water. Another use is as process heating, which is when energy is used directly to raise the temperature of products in the manufacturing process; examples are separating components of crude oil in petroleum refining, drying paint in automobile manufacturing, and cooking packaged foods.

Industry Uses Many Kinds of Energy Sources

Sources of Energy Used for Industry and Manufacturing: Other Sources 43%, Natural Gas 28%, Electricity 14%, LPG 11%, Fuel Oil 2%, Coal 1%, Coke & Breeze 1%.
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"Other energy sources" account for 43% of the energy manufacturers' use of heat, power, and electricity generation. Among these sources are steam, pulping liquor from paper making, agricultural waste, tree wood, wood residues from mill processing, and wood-related and paper-related refuse.

Energy Use by Type of Industry, 2006: Petroleum Refining 32%, Chemical 24%, Paper 11%, Metal 8%, Other 25%
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In the manufacturing sector, the predominant energy sources are natural gas and electricity (a secondary source). Manufacturers also use several other energy sources for heat, power, and electricity generation that include:

  • Steam
  • Pulping liquor from paper making
  • Agricultural waste
  • Tree wood
  • Wood residues from mill processing
  • Wood-related and paper-related refuse

Energy Use by Type of Industry

Every industry uses energy, but there are a handful of energy-intensive industries that use the bulk of the energy consumed by the industrial sector.

The petroleum refining industry is the largest industrial consumer of energy, followed closely by the chemical industry. The refining, chemical, paper and metal industries together use:

  • 97% of the energy feedstock
  • 91% of the byproduct energy
  • 67% of total inputs of energy for heat, power, and electricity generation

Energy Sources Used as Feedstocks

Many energy sources, such as coal and petroleum, are used in manufacturing not as fuel — but like ingredients in a recipe. When raw materials are used like this in the manufacturing process, they are called "feedstocks."

The share of each energy-related feedstock used by industry is:

  • Liquefied petroleum gas (32%)
  • Coal (6%)
  • Natural gas (6%)
  • Less common sources account for the largest share of feedstock (56%)