Insulation Audit and the Economic Thickness of Insulation

This online engineering PDH course provides insight to the energy loss from an inadequate or uninsulated surface and discusses "how much" insulation is adequate on economic criteria.

Consideration of cost and conservation of fuel warrant a close assessment of insulation systems in the existing installations and new projects. Identifying the rate of thermal energy (heat) loss from an inadequate or uninsulated surface is the starting point for understanding the incentive for installing thermal insulation.

A thermal insulation thickness that satisfies an economic assessment of the minimal cost of owning and operating a thermal system is commonly called the economic thickness. The economic thickness pays for itself besides earning a return over its original cost. From this definition, any changes occurring in the prices of fuel or in the insulation cost will tend to shift the economic thickness to another value. Therefore the insulation levels, which were uneconomical in the earlier years, may be quite lucrative now due to drastic increase in fuel prices in the recent years. Based on the prevailing cost structure one has to review the entire insulation system and assess if additional insulation is necessary to achieve optimum economy.

This 4 PDH  online course is applicable to mechanical, chemical and process engineers as well as system design engineers working in power, P&C, refineries, fertilizers, metal & mining, manufacturing and engineering industries. This course is also intended for energy auditors, operational and maintenance personnel, health & safety personnel and loss prevention engineers.