Industrial process heating with clean electricity
RotoDynamic Heater™ (RDH) replaces fossil-fuel burners in high-temperature industrial processes with clean electricity. It is designed for outlet temperatures up to 1,700 °C and has been demonstrated above 1,000 °C at MW scale over more than 5,000 pilot operating hours.
RDH at a glance
1,700 °C
design temperature
1,000 °C
Demonstrated at MW scale
90–95%
Electricity-to-Heat
Multi-MW
available today, path to 50+ MW
MV
Medium-voltage motor and drive
Retrofit
into existing plants
Why electrify process heat
Heavy industry accounts for around a quarter of global CO₂ emissions, and much of it comes from burning fossil fuels to make high-temperature heat. RDH replaces that combustion with clean electricity. Together with the RotoDynamic Reactor™, it can cut up to 2.4 Gt of CO₂ a year at full deployment – about 7% of global emissions.
RDH compared
Conventional process heat comes from burning coal, natural gas or oil. Electric alternatives exist, but conventional resistive heaters are typically limited to about 800–1,100 °C and kilowatt to low-megawatt duties. RDH brings medium-voltage, multi-megawatt heating above 1,000 °C in one compact machine.
RDH heats air, nitrogen, CO₂, steam or process gases, and the hot gas is used outside the heater, in a kiln, dryer, furnace or preheater, in place of fuel firing.
Benefits
Key advantages of RotoDynamic Heater
No combustion emissions: no CO₂, NOx or SOx at the point of use; zero CO₂ when powered by renewable electricity
High efficiency: 90–95% of the electricity becomes process heat
Compact and retrofittable: fits into existing plants as well as new ones
Flexible: heats air, nitrogen, CO₂, steam and process gases
Competitive operating cost: avoids fuel and carbon costs and brings in significant additional operational benefits (e.g., increased production capacity, increased yields, more accurate temperature control, higher utilization of alternative fuels)
How it works
RDH brings together rocket science, turbomachinery and chemical engineering. An electric motor drives a rotor that accelerates the gas to very high speed; the gas then slows in the diffuser, and its kinetic energy turns into heat. The shaft’s mechanical energy goes directly into the gas – no burner and no heating elements.
Where RDH is used
Cement
Electric heat for raw-material and alternative fuel drying, clay calcination and precalciners.
Iron and Steel
Electric preheating for scrap, hot-stove air and DRI reduction gas, and reheating furnaces.
Aluminum
Electric heat for holding, casting and heat-treatment furnaces and alumina calcination.
Petrochemicals
Electric preheating of petrochemical feeds across various processes with RDH.
From pilot to first commercial delivery
RDH has run at our MW-scale pilot plant at Brightlands Chemelot Campus in Geleen, the Netherlands, since December 2022, heating gases, including natural gas, above 1,000 °C. Coolbrook’s first commercial RotoDynamic Heater™ is in delivery to Adani Cement’s Boyareddypalli plant in India – delivery agreement signed in November 2025. The next generation of RDH is being developed for higher temperatures and thermal power.
2021 – 2025
- Establishment of strong patent portfolio
- Successful pilot program at Coolbrook’s test facility in Brightlands Chemelot Campus for RDH™ and RDR™ with more than 5,000 operating hours to date:
- Temperatures above 1,000 °C reached (RDH)
- Hexane, naphtha, and pyrolysis oil successfully cracked (RDR)
- Establishment of a wide partner network of world-leading universities, customers, and technology partners
- Development of the first commercial industrial product (RDH™)
- Signing of the first commercial delivery contract
2026 – 2028
- Delivery of the first commercial project
- Further customer orders for follow-on projects across target industries:
- Cement
- Iron and Steel
- Aluminum
- Petrochemicals
- Further expansion of the partner network with world-leading technology partners
- RDH™ and RDR™ part of electrification technology offering of key suppliers and EPC companies
- Development of core technological features for:
- High-temperature RDH™
- First commercial RDR™
2029 →
- High number of commercial deliveries to customers across target industries
- Expansion to new use cases requiring higher temperatures and power levels
- Continued partnerships within a network of globally leading industry players and decarbonization actors in different sectors
- Launch of the next generation products:
- High-temperature RDH™ capable of reaching temperatures of 1,400 °C (and ultimately 1,700 °C)
- First commercial RDR™ to decarbonize ethylene production at scale
Coolbrook’s RotoDynamic technology is one of few viable solutions for greenhouse gas emissions, replacing the burning of fossil fuel by renewable electricity as the energy source.
Dr. Ir. Bert Kip
Former CEO, Brightlands Chemelot Campus
