F.A.Q.

Turboden supports the energy transition in hard-to-abate sectors, that is, energy-intensive industries such as steel, chemicals, cement, oil & gas, and paper, where reducing CO₂ emissions is particularly challenging to achieve using conventional technologies. To do so, it provides advanced technological solutions for power generation and heat electrification, combining solid technical expertise in carbon emission mitigation with the ability to optimize processes throughout the entire project lifecycle.

Energy generation solutions:

• ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) systems: closed-loop technologies that efficiently generate electricity and heat from a wide range of heat sources, including renewable energy, industrial waste heat, and high-temperature production processes. Operating without water or steam and using organic fluids, ORC systems are compact, reliable, and ideal for distributed generation and low- and medium-temperature heat recovery, improving energy efficiency and reducing environmental impact.
• Gas expanders: solutions to improve the efficiency of natural gas networks by recovering the energy released during pressure reduction and converting it into clean electricity. Turboden expanders transform otherwise wasted energy into useful power, increasing sustainability in gas transmission and distribution systems.

Heat electrification solutions:

• High-temperature heat pumps: innovative systems for the electrification of hot water and industrial steam. Turboden high-temperature heat pumps generate electrified heat at any capacity and up to 250°C, including in the form of steam, opening up new opportunities for decarbonization in the most energy-intensive industrial processes.

The use of gas expanders in natural gas distribution networks offers numerous advantages, both in terms of energy efficiency and economic and environmental sustainability.

• Easy integration into existing infrastructure: they integrate flexibly into existing gas network systems, minimizing the impact on the infrastructure and reducing installation time.
• Simple and reliable management of partial loads: they guarantee stable and continuous performance even under variable load conditions, ensuring operational reliability in any operating scenario.
• Unattended operation: Designed to operate fully automatically, they do not require the constant presence of on-site personnel.
• Energy recovery from a waste heat source: they harness the gas pressure drop by converting it into electricity, turning an unavoidable cost into a source of revenue.
• Long service life and low maintenance costs: with an operational life exceeding 20 years and a robust design, they ensure a solid return on investment and low operating costs over time.

These advantages are fully realized in Turboden’s gas expanders, developed over 40 years of experience in turbomachinery design with the support of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries. To date, Turboden offers more than 60 turbine models, establishing itself as a proven and reliable solution for the decarbonization of natural gas distribution networks.

When selecting a supplier of power generation systems, experience is not merely a secondary consideration: it is a key factor in ensuring the long-term reliability, performance, and operational continuity of the systems. A supplier with an established presence in the industry is able to anticipate design challenges, optimize solutions based on the specific requirements of each application, and provide structured technical support throughout the plant’s entire lifecycle. This translates to lower operational risks, reduced downtime, and greater protection of your investment.

This is the case with Turboden, a company that has been active in the energy efficiency sector since 1980. With over 480 systems installed in more than 50 countries around the world, we have a track record that demonstrates not only the technological robustness of our solutions, but also our ability to adapt to a wide variety of operating environments and application requirements.

Our solutions stand out for:

• Proven reliability, built on decades of experience in the design, installation, and maintenance of systems worldwide;
• Technological flexibility, in terms of machine models and sizes, even within the same application configuration;
• Customization, thanks to solutions tailored to specific applications and industrial sectors.

Partnering with a company like Turboden, which has nearly 50 years of experience, means having a technical partner who can guide you through every stage of the project, from the initial assessment to long-term operational management.

ORC (Organic Rankine Cycle) technology is one of the most versatile solutions for converting heat into electricity in the renewable energy sector. Unlike traditional steam cycles, the ORC cycle uses organic fluids with a lower boiling point, making it particularly well-suited for harnessing low-to-medium-temperature heat sources typical of renewable energy applications. Furthermore, the absence of water use makes the technology highly suitable for installation in desert areas.

The main applications include:

• Conventional geothermal energy, where heat extracted from hydrothermal resources is converted into electricity (or both electricity and heat) with high efficiency and continuous production;
• Next-generation geothermal energy, for the exploitation of unconventional resources such as EGS systems, which open up new prospects for geothermal power generation in areas previously deemed unfeasible;
• Biomass, for the combined production of electricity and heat from the combustion of organic material in high-efficiency cogeneration plants;
• Waste-to-Energy, for energy recovery from waste treatment and disposal processes, transforming a waste stream into a valuable energy resource.

In this context, Turboden stands as one of the world’s leading technology providers, developing ORC solutions for renewable energy tailored to each of these applications, with a range of machines available in various sizes and configurations, designed to maximize energy output and ensure long-term operational reliability.

Maintenance is not simply a routine task: it is a strategic element in ensuring that a facility operates at its full potential over the long term. A structured maintenance contract helps prevent breakdowns, reduce downtime, and protect the value of the investment over time.

Our maintenance contracts are designed to support both scheduled and unscheduled maintenance throughout the entire lifecycle of the plants, with the goal of maximizing their reliability and performance while optimizing operating costs year after year.

Turboden's service agreements include:

• Remote technical support, for real-time assistance;
• Scheduled maintenance, to ensure the system continues to operate properly over time and to maximize performance;
• Predictive maintenance, to anticipate potential issues and ensure the system’s operational availability;
• Availability guarantee, to ensure production continuity;
• Extended warranty, for broader long-term protection of your investment.

Relying on a Turboden after-sales plan means having an experienced technical partner by your side, capable of responding promptly when needed and tailoring maintenance activities to the specific characteristics of each system and operating environment.

Optimizing the performance of a power generation plant no longer depends solely on the quality of mechanical components, but increasingly on the ability to collect, interpret, and act on operational data in real time. The most advanced digital solutions do more than simply monitor operating parameters; they transform data streams into operational intelligence, enabling targeted interventions to maximize efficiency and reduce unplanned downtime.

Tools based on artificial intelligence and automated performance analysis now represent a significant leap forward compared to traditional control systems, making it possible to anticipate critical issues, optimize operating parameters, and make decisions based on concrete data rather than on empirical assessments.

In this context, Turboden has developed Turboanalytics, an AI-based tool specifically designed to optimize its systems. Turboanalytics enables automated performance analysis and monitoring of operating parameters with the goal of maximizing performance and reliability over time.

The Rankine Cycle is a thermodynamic cycle that converts heat into work. The heat is supplied to a closed loop, which typically uses water as working fluid. The Rankine Cycle based on water provides approximately 85% of worldwide electricity production.

The Organic Rankine Cycle's principle is based on a turbogenerator working as a conventional steam turbine to transform thermal energy into mechanical energy and finally into electric energy through an electrical generator. Instead of generating steam from water, the ORC system vaporizes an organic fluid, characterized by a molecular mass higher than that of water, which leads to a slower rotation of the turbine, lower pressures and no erosion of the metal parts and blades.

The Rankine cycle is named after William John Macquorn Rankine (July 5, 1820 - December 24, 1872), a Scottish engineer and physicist. He was a founding contributor to the science of thermodynamics. Rankine developed a complete theory of the steam engine and indeed of all heat engines. His manuals of engineering science and practice were used for many decades after their publication in the 1850s and 1860s.

Turboden is part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group and fully embrace MHI values, pillars of its philosophy and vision. The company has the constant support of its parent company regarding financial stability, sharing of business practices (including customer warranties) and technological development.

With among 40 years of experience, Turboden holds the know-how of the ORC technology with a total capacity of more than 1000 MWe, with about 460 plants in more than 50 countries.

Turboden is really focused on the customer always dedicating to the succes of the customer's projects thanks to our after-sales department. Ready to provide optimized solutions for our clients with high plant availability and high customer satisfaction.

Turboden Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) plants produce power and heat with high efficiency and user friendly operation by using any kind of biomass, from virgin wood to organic residues from various production processes. The generated power ranges up to 40 MW electric per single shaft.

Turboden ORC units can produce electricity by recovering heat from industrial processes and in combined cycles with reciprocating engines and gas turbines. The power of Turboden turbo generators in this application generally ranges up to 40 MW electric per single shaft.