Money To Burn?

This article looks into the various furnace options on offer to the glass sector, and how rising fuel prices in Asia are adversely affecting plant profitability. Glassmakers have come up with a variety of partial solutions to the fuel crisis, including more insulation; improved refractories and furnace designs, and more efficient burners. Some have tried changing the fuel source by using oxygen instead of air in furnaces. Others have used electric boosting to hasten melt times and improve processes. Most of these improvements, however, produce only small energy savings. This article looks particularly at firing options in the flat glass industry and their cost implications.