Measuring specific fuel consumption gives a true reflection of your plant efficiencies. With steadily climbing fuel prices, monitoring plant efficiencies is integral to sustain energy savings.

Though the steadily climbing fuel prices had fallen temporarily, there is no doubt that it will continue its upward journey.

In recent times the common route to cut fuel costs has been to switch over to cheaper fuels where possible.

However, fuel change alone, only reduces the quantum of monetary loss but does not alter the percentage of loss in the system.

A good measure to understand your plant’s utility consumption and efficiency is to compare it vis-à-vis production. Specific Fuel Consumption (SFC) is a ratio of the total fuel consumed to produce a unit product. SFC incorporates the efficiencies of all steam using equipments between the boiler and final product and hence is convenient for comparing energy efficiency between similar plants.

Regular tracking of the SFC enables a plant to trend fuel consumption and gauge the impact of energy conservation measures on the total fuel consumption. Corrective actions to reduce the fuel consumption can be taken in case of any deviation.

Calculating the SFC:

• Total daily production:
• Total fuel consumed in the boiler for the same day:
• Specific fuel consumption = B/A