Glass Futures along with one of their member sites, Pilkington UK Ltd (part of NSG Group) are involved in a £1.7m BEIS funded project to demonstrate the feasibility of low-cost carbon capture solutions in hard-to-decarbonise industries like glass.
The not-for-profit research and technology organisation has partnered with C-Capture, developers of world-leading chemical processes in carbon dioxide removal, who have secured funding from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s (BEIS) £1billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio.
Thought to be the first time a carbon capture and storage unit has been deployed at a glass manufacturing site, C-Capture’s unique, solvent based technology will be trialled and assessed with real-world flue gas at other sites across the cement and Energy from Waste (EfW) sectors.
The other project partners are Hanson Cement, part of the Heidelberg Group at their Ketton Cement Works in Rutland and Energy Works Hull, an EfW site whose major owner is Bioenergy Infrastructure Group (BIG). The project runs in conjunction with consulting and engineering company, Wood.
Project ‘XLR8 CCS’ hopes to prove that the next generation carbon capture solvent is compatible with harsh, real-world industrial emissions that are major contributors to global carbon levels.
“Glass is the perfect material to support a circular economy because it is infinitely recyclable. However, glass manufacturing is currently a major contributor of CO2 emissions, arising from combustion of fossil fuels to heat the furnaces and released during the melting of the raw materials used to make glass.
Carbon capture technologies can therefore play a key role in helping the glass sector to decarbonise. This project has the potential to build a better understanding of the technology and associated economics and risks, thus breaking down barriers for the glass sector to develop and adopt carbon capture technologies. As such we’re delighted to have this opportunity to work with C-Capture and NSG to help lead the first demonstration of a carbon-capture technology on an industrial glass furnace.”
Said Rob Ireson, Innovation and Partnerships Manager at Glass Futures
Glass and cement are essential to economies around the world. Concrete is the most consumed material by weight globally after water and one of its key ingredients is cement. The UK’s glass industry contributes around £2bn every year to the economy and emits over 2 million tonnes of CO2 annually in the UK.
EfW plants convert waste that would otherwise be sent to landfill into power for homes. All three of these industries are particularly challenging to decarbonise due to the level and type of impurities in their flue gas emissions.
Carbon capture has been identified as an essential component in the route to decarbonisation but barriers to adopting the technology include flue gas compatibility and cost, things the project hopes to alleviate.
“As we accelerate the UK’s energy independence by boosting clean, home-grown, affordable energy, it’s crucial that our industries reduce their reliance on fossil fuels. This investment will help them to not only cut emissions, but also save money on energy bills, on top of supporting jobs by encouraging green innovation across in the UK.”
Said Greg Hands, Energy and Climate Change Minister
Project success will see C-Capture and its project partners well placed for deployment of commercial-scale carbon capture facilities across the three industries by 2030 which could capture millions of tonnes of CO2 per year.
“The amount of CO2 being generated and released into the atmosphere is currently at a scale that is hard to imagine. The deployment of carbon capture technology is essential – and urgent – to achieve net zero by 2050. Our solution has the potential to be a game changer for carbon capture. It uses less energy than currently available technology meaning it can significantly reduce the cost of carbon capture to a point that makes it affordable globally. It is also environmentally benign, well suited to the large-scale capture of CO2 and robust enough to withstand even the most aggressive flue gases. These advantages mean it has potential to break the barriers that are preventing the widespread adoption of carbon capture and storage technology, to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
We are delighted to be collaborating on our XLR8 CCS project with Wood, a global top tier engineering firm headquartered in the UK, and with companies within the glass, cement and EfW industries who have strong commitments to decarbonisation and are early adopters of novel carbon capture technology. Together, we will deploy our unique solvent across a wider variety of applications– and in this case some of the most challenging industries to decarbonise – demonstrating how the UK is leading the way to develop and export industrial decarbonisation technologies. The project is a huge step forward for these industries and a critical stepping stone in the path to net zero.”
Said Tom White, CEO, C-Capture