One week after the release of the British government’s hydrogen strategy, a trial of using 100% hydrogen to produce float glass was started in the Liverpool area, which was the first time in the world.
Fossil fuels such as natural gas usually used in the production process will be completely replaced by hydrogen, which shows that the glass industry can significantly reduce carbon emissions and take a big step toward achieving the goal of net zero.
The test was carried out at the St Helens factory in Pilkington, a British glass company, where the company first started manufacturing glass in 1826. In order to decarbonize the UK, almost all economic sectors need to be completely transformed. Industry accounts for 25% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the UK, and reducing these emissions is vital if the country is to reach “net zero.”
However, energy-intensive industries are one of the most difficult challenges to deal with. Industrial emissions, such as glass manufacturing, are particularly difficult to reduce emissions-through this experiment, we are one step closer to overcoming this obstacle. The groundbreaking “HyNet Industrial Fuel Conversion” project is led by Progressive Energy, and hydrogen is provided by BOC, which will provide HyNet with confidence in replacing natural gas with low-carbon hydrogen.
This is considered to be the world’s first large-scale demonstration of 100% hydrogen combustion in a living float (sheet) glass production environment. The Pilkington test in the United Kingdom is one of several ongoing projects in northwest England to test how hydrogen can replace fossil fuels in manufacturing. Later this year, further trials of HyNet will be held in Port Sunlight, Unilever.
These demonstration projects will jointly support the conversion of glass, food, beverage, power and waste industries to the use of low-carbon hydrogen to replace their use of fossil fuels. Both trials used hydrogen supplied by BOC. In February 2020, BEIS provided 5.3 million pounds in funding for the HyNet Industrial Fuel Conversion Project through its energy innovation project.
“HyNet will bring employment and economic growth to the Northwest region and start a low-carbon economy. We are focused on reducing emissions, protecting the 340,000 existing manufacturing jobs in the Northwest region, and creating more than 6,000 new permanent jobs. , Putting the region on the path to becoming a world leader in clean energy innovation.”
Matt Buckley, UK general manager of Pilkington UK Ltd., a subsidiary of NSG Group, said: “Pilkington and St Helens once again stood at the forefront of industrial innovation and conducted the world’s first hydrogen test on a float glass production line.”
“HyNet will be a major step to support our decarbonization activities. After several weeks of full-scale production trials, it has successfully proven that it is feasible to operate a float glass factory with hydrogen safely and effectively. We now look forward to the HyNet concept becoming a reality.”
Now, more and more glass manufacturers are increasing the R&D and innovation of energy-saving and emission-reducing technologies, and use new melting technology to control the energy consumption of glass production. The editor will list three for you.
1. Oxygen combustion technology
Oxygen combustion refers to the process of replacing air with oxygen in the process of fuel combustion. This technology makes about 79% of the nitrogen in the air no longer participate in the combustion, which can increase the flame temperature and accelerate the combustion speed. In addition, the exhaust gas emissions during oxy-fuel combustion are about 25% to 27% of air combustion, and the melting rate is also significantly improved, reaching 86% to 90%, which means that the area of the furnace required to obtain the same amount of glass is reduced. Small.
In June 2021, as a key industrial support project in Sichuan Province, Sichuan Kangyu Electronic Technology ushered in the official completion of the main project of its all-oxygen combustion kiln, which basically has the conditions for shifting the fire and raising the temperature. The construction project is “ultra-thin electronic cover glass substrate, ITO conductive glass substrate”, which is currently the largest one-kiln two-line all-oxygen combustion float electronic glass production line in China.
The melting department of the project adopts oxy-fuel combustion + electric boosting technology, relying on oxygen and natural gas combustion, and auxiliary melting through electric boosting, etc., which can not only save 15% to 25% of fuel consumption, but also increase the kiln The output per unit area of the furnace increases the production efficiency by about 25%. In addition, it can also reduce exhaust gas emissions, reduce the proportion of NOx, CO₂ and other nitrogen oxides produced by combustion by more than 60%, and fundamentally solve the problem of emission sources!
2. Flue gas denitration technology
The principle of flue gas denitration technology is to use oxidant to oxidize NOX to NO2, and then the generated NO2 is absorbed by water or alkaline solution to achieve denitration. The technology is mainly divided into selective catalytic reduction denitrification (SCR), selective non-catalytic reduction denitrification (SCNR) and wet flue gas denitrification.
At present, in terms of waste gas treatment, glass companies in Shahe area have basically built SCR denitration facilities, using ammonia, CO or hydrocarbons as reducing agents to reduce NO in flue gas to N2 in the presence of oxygen.
Hebei Shahe Safety Industrial Co., Ltd. 1-8# glass furnace flue gas desulfurization, denitrification and dust removal backup line EPC project. Since it was completed and put into operation in May 2017, the environmental protection system has been operating stably, and the concentration of pollutants in the flue gas can reach particles less than 10 mg/N㎡, sulfur dioxide is less than 50 mg/N㎡, and nitrogen oxides is less than 100 mg/N㎡, and the pollution emission indicators are up to standard stably for a long time.
3. Waste heat power generation technology
Glass melting furnace waste heat power generation is a technology that uses waste heat boilers to recover thermal energy from the waste heat of glass melting furnaces to generate electricity. The boiler feed water is heated to produce superheated steam, and then the superheated steam is sent to the steam turbine to expand and perform work, convert electrical energy into mechanical energy, and then drive the generator to generate electricity. This technology is not only energy-saving, but also conducive to environmental protection.
Xianning CSG invested 23 million yuan in the construction of a waste heat power generation project in 2013, and it was successfully connected to the grid in August 2014. In recent years, Xianning CSG has been using waste heat power generation technology to achieve energy saving and emission reduction in the glass industry. It is reported that the average power generation of Xianning CSG waste heat power station is about 40 million kWh. The conversion factor is calculated based on the standard coal consumption of power generation of 0.350kg of standard coal/kWh and the carbon dioxide emission of 2.62kg/kg of standard coal. The power generation is equivalent to saving 14,000. Tons of standard coal, reducing emissions of 36,700 tons of carbon dioxide!
The goal of “carbon peak” and “carbon neutrality” is a long way to go. Glass companies still need to continue their efforts to upgrade new technologies in the glass industry, adjust the technical structure, and promote the accelerated realization of my country’s “dual carbon” goals. I believe that under the development of science and technology and the deep cultivation of many glass manufacturers, the glass industry will surely achieve high-quality development, green development and sustainable development!