GEA ADDCOOL®
GEA’s innovative high temperature heat pump solution allows you to cut the carbon footprint of your spray drying plant by reducing fossil fuel and primary energy consumption.
For a more resource-efficient spray drying process
GEA AddCool® is a cost-effective heat pump solution for spray dryers, allowing dairies and other food industries to substantially improve process efficiency.
Innovative GEA technology, backed by decades of experience in heat pumps and spray drying, can enable up to 49%* less energy consumption and typically 50-80% reduced carbon footprint.
Partner with us to meet your sustainability goals, enhance your performance, and improve your business.
Improve process sustainability
Significantly decrease your carbon foodprint, fossil fuel dependence, and primary energy consumption.
Enhance performance
Reduce operational costs while maintaining superior quality and powder processing capacity.
Integrate with confidence
Profit from a proven solution and benefit from decades of experience in spray drying and heat pump technology.
Resource efficient solution
A system composed of a spray dryer equipped with the AddCool® heat pump solution, as used in the dairy industry, has been awarded the GEA Add Better label for its positive impact on reduced energy consumption. To establish that this system really can help to make spray drying less energy intensive, we put it through a dedicated suite of tests and evaluations that have been validated by TÜV, according to ISO 14021 standards. TÜV accepted key test results demonstrating that the spray dryer’s energy consumption can be reduced by up to 49%*. The Add Better label relates to the serial product 1947899, released in November 2022. The comparison refers to its predecessor model. The data are available for any of our customers to view.
How does it work
GEA AddCool® solution is powered by electricity, not by burning fossil fuels. The heat pump technology effectively draws waste energy from the dryer itself, other processes in your plant, or even from the external air, as an efficient way of generating the hot air for your spray dryer.
Retrofit into a typical spray drying plant, or installed into a new plant, the innovative, patent-pending AddCool® system can reduce the dryer’s overall energy demand, and cut fossil fuel consumption and carbon footprint by 50-80%. The system also generates additional cooling capacity that can be channeled to elsewhere in the plant.
Even though electricity might be more expensive than fossil fuels, the high efficiency of the GEA AddCool® system means that - dependent on energy prices - your energy costs could be significantly reduced. So, as well as enabling a more resource-efficient spray drying process with a lower CO2 footprint, you could see a significant return on your investment within just a few years.
Have a look at the video, which explains this in a bit more detail.
Matching our technology to your needs
We’ll work with you to configure the components and setup of the GEA AddCool® technology to match the requirements of your existing spray drying process, throughput and scale, and wider plant processes. Importantly, using GEA AddCool® doesn’t change the way your spray dryer works, but rather, is designed to work with your existing spray dryer air heating system. This means you can keep your spray dryer running when the GEA AddCool® system is temporarily taken offline for routine maintenance, so you don’t have to experience any unnecessary or unexpected down time in production. And while we hope that your existing spray dryer was sourced from GEA, we can also tailor GEA AddCool® solutions for use with spray drying technology from other manufacturers. Just talk to us to explore the possibilities.
Of course, just as we do for all of our spray dryer and heat pump systems, we can offer a range of service options for the GEA AddCool® technology. We’re here to support your processes and maintain your components and equipment, so you can be confident that all of your GEA systems will give you top performance for their whole lifespan.
GEA AddCool® benefits
- Carbon footprint reduced by 50-80% as a result of lower fossil fuel consumption
- Primary energy consumption reduced by up to 49%*
- Cost savings, dependent upon energy prices
- Reduced electrical power consumption by existing chillers
- Easy retrofit into existing plants
- No change to powder production process or powder characteristics
- May be integrated with dehumidifier systems to further increase capacity and improve quality
Spray dryer case studies
We have two case studies that highlight real-time use cases. Learn how GEA AddCool® cut CO2 emissions at a major European dairy by 59%, and how a GEA Holistic Energy Audit uncovered a potential 8,000 tons/y CO2 saving to a leading German dairy processor.
GEA AddCool® case study
Learn how GEA AddCool® was identified as an ideal solution to reduce the use of fossil fuels, lowering CO2 emissions in spray drying by 59%.
GEA holistic energy audit case study
Click to uncover how GEAs energy experts carried out a holistic energy audit which led to potential CO2 savings of 8,000 tons/y.
Want to know more? Get in touch with our experts today
Webinar on demand "Time is up for fossil fuels in spray drying"
In this webinar, hosts Stig Møller Andersen and Riccardo Bergamini take you on a sustainability journey. They'll explain how you can reduce your spray dryer’s overall energy and fossil fuelconsumption, and cut CO2 emissions.
Engineering resource-efficient solutions for spray drying plants
Discover how GEA experts can integrate energy- and other resource-saving technologies, and clever digital tools into your spray drying line, to help you to meet your process sustainability goals. In this video, GEA energy expert Riccardo explains how our solutions, including GEA AddCool® heat pumps, passive heat recovery systems, and digital GEA OptiPartner® process optimization solution, could help you to dramatically reduce your spray drying plant’s reliance on fossil fuels, boost relative energy efficiency, and cut CO2 emissions.
*The energy reduction can be lower or higher depending on the specific process conditions.
Downloads
Related Products
COMPACT DRYER Spray Dryer
The COMPACT DRYER is the perfect choice whether it is a matter of whey powder or dense milk-powder production.
Conventional Spray Dryer
Cost effective single-stage dryer that can be upgraded to let you create a wide range of powders for industries as diverse chemicals and food ingredients
FSD® Spray Dryer
The NIRO FSD® spray dryer is an agile, efficient multi-stage spray dryer that is ideal for processing coarse, agglomerated and dustless powders.
MSD® Spray Dryer
The MSD® Spray Dryer is the preferred choice for many dairy products such as e.g. Milk Powder and Nutritional Formula where uniform coarse, agglomerated, free-flowing and dustless powders are in great demand.
Service Products
GEA SAFEXPERT®
The innovative process diagnostic and consultant service.
GEA Health Check Spray Dryer
Inadequate maintenance can lead to safety risks, lower product quality, costly repairs, and reduced equipment life. GEA Health Check Spray Dryer offers a thorough inspection and tailored service report to help you proactively maintain uptime, quality, and longevity.
GEA Insights
A new recipe for indulgence
What if your favorite chocolate didn’t require cocoa beans and your coffee was locally produced? As climate disruption, price hikes and ethical concerns hit two of our most beloved indulgences, scientists are reimagining how we produce them – using microbes, not monocultures. The goal: preserve the flavor and properties of coffee and chocolate while minimizing carbon emissions and improving food resilience.
Fueling the circular economy in shipping
Ports now compete not just on logistics, but on sustainability. At Greece’s Piraeus port, an advanced processing and recovery facility recycles ship waste oil into fuel. Equipped with GEA’s high-performance centrifuges, it sets a new benchmark for state-of-the-art, environmentally responsible port operations.
Closing the loop: key lessons for breweries from OeTTINGER
The 2022 CO2 shortage forced breweries to review their dependency on global supply chains. Many were forced to close, unable to carbonate their products. At its breweries in Germany, OeTTINGER GETRÄNKE is turning its own CO2 into a powerful lever for independence and sustainability – with the help of CO2 recovery technology from GEA.
