Sustainable practices in the glass industry

Sustainable practices in the glass industry

Glassis present in countless products that we use in many aspects of our daily lives, and is also used in many industries, from beverage containers and various food materials, to optical fibers, and others.

Glass has many distinctive properties and can be manufactured at a relatively low cost. Therefore, it has become an essential material in the rapid development movement, as we find it in the construction of homes and skyscrapers, and it is also an essential element in a group of industries, such as: the automobile industry, and the chemical industries, and this is in addition to some advanced uses in the manufacture of technical means, such as: screens, mobile phones, medical devices, and others.

Glass is also attractive, as it is a sustainable option that can be compatible with environmental strategies and trends in many countries and companies, in addition to the growing awareness of climate issues among consumers. It can be recycled up to 100%, so the industry can apply circular economy concepts in a real and workable way.

At the same time, glass can help sustain a number of other industries and increase their efficiency in energy consumption, but the heavy consumption in its production remains a challenge in itself, despite the increased innovation movement – in the past decades – among the companies that manufacture it. In order to increase the efficiency of the production process and reduce energy loss.

Nature of the industrial sector

Glass is considered one of the most important and oldest basic materials, as its use dates back to 7,000 years ago in ancient Egypt, and today it is present around us in almost everything, as we see it in buildings, means of transportation, containers, natural products, laboratory vessels, communications equipment, and electronic parts. Despite all this, experts are likely to increase its spread more than before, and to increase reliance on it in various applications.

Glass production requires a very high temperature, up to 1600 degrees Celsius, to melt the raw materials, including silica, which represents the main element in its composition, and is used in the form of sand, in addition to other materials such as limestone and sodium carbonate.

Raw materials for glass are plentiful and cheap, but the challenges involved in transporting such materials – including the cost – have made the industry concentrated near the end markets for use.

The cheap price of glass, with its diverse properties in heat tolerance and chemical resistance, in addition to transparency and recyclability; All of these features have made it a commonly used material in many products in various industries. Figures indicate that the world consumed more than 194 million tons of glass in 2019, with demand expected to rise to reach 256 million tons by 2027, with an annual growth of 3.5%.

Glass production can be distributed according to use. According to data from this industrial sector in recent years, glass containers represented 45% of production, while 33% were for “Specialty glass” products, such as: optical fibers, tableware, screens, and others. 16% for flat glass, and 6% for fiberglass.

One of the main reasons for the growing demand for glass is the increased reliance on it in building facades, in addition to the increased consumption of electronic products, which almost all contain glass screens, in addition to solar panels.

Sustainability in the glass industry

The glass industry has gradually transformed over successive decades to be more productive and more energy efficient, thus reserving a place for itself among sustainable industries, keeping pace with the changes taking place in the markets. Perhaps one of the turning points in this industry was the 1970s, a period that witnessed confusion in global energy markets and a shortage of fuel supplies in many countries. Therefore, this industry had no choice but to develop itself. So that you become more efficient than ever before.

The process of completely converting the glass industry to sustainability includes basic axes, the first of which is: recycling, the second: reducing energy consumption and reducing emissions, and the third: its contribution to the sustainability of other sectors.

First: Recycling

Glass can be completely recycled, more than once, and there are many options for reusing its products. It can therefore be considered a major player in the circular economy. Recycling it allows to significantly reduce the consumption of virgin resources, in addition to reducing energy consumption.

It is a process that includes breaking the glass into small pieces, and then melting them at lower temperatures compared to virgin glass. Recycling also consumes 40% less energy than that needed to produce glass from its primary raw materials. Recycling also helps save the environment from waste.

The recycled glass market is growing rapidly, with this market expected to grow to $5.5 billion by the year 2025, an increase from $3.5 billion in 2017, but the main obstacle to this growth is the lack of government support, in addition to the weakness of the recycling infrastructure, as well as the inefficiency of collection systems that may make the recycling process a complex process.

Second: Reducing energy consumption and reducing emissions

The industry is setting updated standards to increase energy efficiency and reduce fuel consumption, including the use of an increasing proportion of broken glass in the industrial process, which has had a direct impact on reducing the industry’s greenhouse gas emissions in recent decades.

The glass industry was able to significantly reduce its emissions rates, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 69% per ton of molten glass produced between 1960 and 2010.

Third: Contribution to other sectors

The glass industry has contributed to energy efficiency among a number of different industries, including, for example, building and construction, where glass plays a pivotal role ingreen buildings among many regions; To maintain the internal heat of buildings, thus reducing energy consumption in cooling and heating systems, in addition to providing natural lighting and reducing electricity consumption.

In the field of renewable energy, the demand for glass in solar power plants is increasing, due to its sensitivity to light, as well as the increased efficiency of the panels. Fiberglass is also used to make blades for windmills that convert wind energy into electricity.

Also, it has a sustainable contribution to transportation, as reinforced structures are manufactured using fiberglass with some other materials in transportation, aviation, etc.; This is with the aim of reducing the weight of these structures, which is directly reflected in fuel consumption.

Opportunities and challenges in the glass industry

Despite the continued progress in the glass industry and its important contributions to sustainability, this industry faces a number of challenges. Its manufacture requires large amounts of energy, and therefore has a clear environmental footprint, as well as other economic aspects of energy consumption.

Emissions resulting from glass manufacturing processes include sulfur oxides (SOx) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), in addition to mainly carbon dioxide, which contributes to global warming. The amount of emissions depends on the type of glass that is produced, as well as the amount and type of fuel used, and whether broken glass is used in the process or not.

Smelting furnaces are responsible for 80-90% of the total air pollutants in this industry. These furnaces also produce – in their exhaust – large quantities of dust, and small percentages of lead and cadmium.

To reduce emissions, the industry is looking into modifying the production process, and finding new solutions to reduce the carbon footprint, perhaps including relying on carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology, in addition to shifting towards carbon-neutral energy sources, such as: biogas or hydrogen, and even electricity generated from renewable sources.

Another way to reduce the emissions of this industry is to adopt electric heating solutions in ore smelting operations, as electric heating methods can reach an efficiency of 85%; That is: twice the efficiency of the best fossil fuel oven, but this transition may not be easy. Due to inadequate infrastructure in many manufacturing facilities.

In conclusion, there is no doubt that the demand for this vital component will increase in the coming years, and despite the great efforts in this giant industrial sector towards increasing energy efficiency and reducing emissions, there is still room for more sustainable transformation, especially through wider adoption of recycling, the use of newer technologies, and intelligent product design that allows – with ease – reuse and recycling.