Carbon capture capabilities for glass
Pilkington UK has supported research into the carbon capture technology used in the manufacture of glass.
C-Capture was awarded funding through Innovate UK’s Sustainable Innovation Fund, which will study the compatibility of the company’s carbon capture technology with the requirements of the glass manufacturing industry.
C-Capture was supported in its application by Pilkington UK, and the experiments will assess the feasibility of deploying carbon capture technology on the glass manufacturer’s site. This is seen as an important step forward in decarbonising glass manufacture.
Leeds-based C-Capture is developing what it describes as the world’s most energy efficient processes for the capture of carbon dioxide. It has patented a safe, low-cost carbon capture technology which uses up to 40% less energy than current commercially available technologies. This uses a new class of capture solvents that are amine and nitrogen free, are not classified as hazardous, are inexpensive, and could be manufactured on a large scale from biological sources.
Emissions from the glass manufacturing industry have traditionally posed technological challenges as they contain high levels of impurities that prevent the use of existing technologies.
During this project, C-Capture will build upon existing data and expose the solvent to representative flue gases found during the glass manufacturing process as the next step to prove the applicability of C-Capture technology to capturing CO2 from heavy industrial waste gases.
By working alongside manufacturers like Pilkington, which are striving to find technological solutions to decarbonise, C-Capture is gearing to fulfil industry-specific requirements.
Dr Helen Atkinson, C-Capture’s business development manager, said: “We are very excited to be working alongside Pilkington; their support for this project demonstrates their commitment to reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.”
Matt Buckley, managing director at Pilkington UK, said: “Our manufacturing and R&D functions are extremely pleased to be collaborating with C-Capture in the development of carbon capture solutions for our glass manufacturing process. We look forward to making further progress in this important and exciting field.”
