Italian team to test hydrogen use in glass melting

An all-Italian working group led by Snam, RINA and Bormioli will test the use of hydrogen blended with natural gas in glass melting furnaces to lower their carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

Glass manufacturing is an energy-intensive and difficult-to-electrify industry. The glass melting stage accounts for more than half of the total energy demand of the glass production process. The main goal of the Divina project (Decarbonisation of the Glass Industry: Hydrogen and New Equipment) is to cut glass melting emissions.

“Testing significant quantities of hydrogen on operational furnaces will be an opportunity to evaluate the compatibility of hydrogen combustion with glass material in real industrial production contexts following appropriate testing in laboratories,” the working group said. The project will also support the design of future equipment -- Furnaces 4.0 -- which could use up to 100% hydrogen.

The Divina working group represents the entire value chain, including energy sector specialists and glass manufacturers, fuel and transportation firms, glass melting furnaces suppliers and university and research centres. The full list of project participants includes Snam, RINA, Bormioli Luigi, Bormioli Rocco, STARA GLASS, UNI.GE., Stazione Sperimentale del Vetro, IFRF Italia, SGRPRO and RJC SOFT.

The partners say that introducing a 30% hydrogen blend in glass melting in Italy, the second-largest glass producer in Europe, would reduce annual CO2 emissions by 200,000 tonnes per year.

Snam and RINA have already carried out 30% hydrogen tests in steel processing.

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