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The Development of a Next Generation Melting System for Glass Production: Opportunities and Progress
Panel: Panel 4. Industrial Energy Efficiency Measures and Technologies
Authors:
Elliott Levine, U.S. Department of Energy
Michael Greenman, Glass Manufacturing Industry Council
Keith Jamison, Energetics, Inc.
Abstract
Energy currently accounts for about 15% of glass production costs, and the majority of energy consumed in the glass industry occurs in the melting and refining of glass. A next generation melting system for glass production must facilitate a new business model, with significant improvement in investment returns, that would allow the U.S. glass industry to better compete in world markets and continue to offer products with the unique properties of glass. This system would reduce energy consumption, reduce capital requirements as well as overall production costs, and at the same time maintain and improve glass quality and environmental stewardship. Achieving such a system will be challenging and will require significant resources and collaboration.
Recently, the U.S. glass industry, through the Glass Manufacturing Industry Council (GMIC), has collaborated with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to examine the potential for developing a next generation glass melting system. Collaborative efforts to date include: conducting a technical workshop for next generation melting technologies, creating a task force to develop technical criteria for next generation melting systems, and preparing a technical and economic assessment of past technology improvement efforts and current melting processes. In addition, DOE has solicited proposals for innovative bench-scale approaches to glass melting as well as general research and development efforts.
The objective of this paper is to highlight the approaches and strategies that have been taken and the results obtained to date on the development of a next generation melting system for glass production. The results obtained to date represent the contributions of many companies and individuals, both domestic and foreign. Included in the paper will be preliminary highlights from the technical and economic assessment, a reference document that will help guide the development path.
Paper
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Panels of
Panel 1. Industrial Energy Efficiency and Sustainability
Panel 2. Leadership and Management Practices in Industrial Energy Efficiency and Sustainability
Panel 3. Policies and Programs to Achieve Industrial Energy Efficiency and Sustainability
Panel 4. Industrial Energy Efficiency Measures and Technologies
Panel 6. Data, Analysis, and Modeling
Panel 5. Combined Heat and Power (CHP) and Distributed Power