Fives has been entrusted by a leading glass bottle manufacturer to design and supply the first hybrid furnace in France.
The new technology is the first air-gas hybrid furnace for glass packaging applications. It is in line with the global decarbonization strategy of both companies as it will substantially reduce energy consumption and emissions. The furnace is capable to replace up to 70 percent of conventional fossil fuel with electricity.
CO2 emissions at the site will be reduced by 43 percent in comparison to conventional technology with an average electricity usage of 50 percent. In addition to the decarbonization impact, the new technology will also further reduce NOx emissions.
Revolutionary heat recovery
The furnace is equipped with a revolutionary heat recovery and air preheating system which creates further efficiency gains.
The Heat Recovery Area (H.R.A.™) is designed to recover heat from waste gas. It is enabling preheating of batch blanket in a lowered superstructure section and reduce fume temperature without the needs for additional equipment, such as regenerators. The H.R.A.™ also incorporates multi-zone electric-boosting technology, which replaces much of the conventional combustion.
“The hybrid melting technology offers greater flexibility in all aspects and is a game changing technology for the glass packaging market,” said Alexandre Brusset, Vice President of Glass at Fives. “It allows glassmakers to manage changing pulls and different glass colours, while significantly reducing energy consumption and emissions. This technology represents a step further down the road of decarbonization for glass makers.”