Glass Melting Technology: A Technical and Economic ... - OSTI

Introduction
The goal of the project, “Glass Melting Technology: A Technical and Economic Assessment,” is to create
a common base of knowledge on which future technology might be developed for one of the nation’s
most important industries. The objectives of this study were to better understand the issues that face the
US glass industry, particularly with regard to current melting technologies; to identify the factors that will
motivate the industry to adopt new technology for commercial glass melting; and to analyze the barriers
that have stifled technical innovation and change.
One of the major barriers to finding common goals to advance glass melting technology has been the
division of the glass industry into four major segments, each with its own requirements, products, and
processing methods. To obtain a broad vision of the total industry, the study focused on the larger
segments of the glass industry that represent more than 90 percent of all container, flat, textile and
insulation fiber, and the major segments of specialty glass, i.e., lighting, TV and tableware.
This report represents the collective efforts of glass scientists, engineers and manufacturers,
organizations, academic institutions, technical librarians and automation specialists. Experienced glass
engineers, scientists and manufacturers gave willingly of their time and experience to help the authors
assess the challenges that face the glass industry as a whole. Personnel and institutions throughout the
United States, Europe and Asia generously provided information vital to this study. Professional technical
librarians and research scientists conducted exhaustive literature and patent searches that resulted in over
500 technical articles and over 300 patents that been categorized and evaluated, making this an invaluable
reference tool. The experimental work of glass scientists and engineers provided a record of the
innovations in glass-melting technological innovations that have been developed but, for economic and
technical reasons, not implemented over the last quarter of the past century.
Today, the US glass industry faces serious economic and technological challenges in three areas that must
be addressed. a) Energy consumption must be further reduced, as its future availability, cost and
effectiveness are uncertain. A melting system that addresses this issue must be developed. b)
Environmental regulations for gaseous and particulate emissions are expected to become more restrictive,
and glass manufacturers must be prepared to comply. c) Capital investment for operations and plant
facilities is extraordinary, and glass manufacturers must become more attractive if the glass industry is to
remain viable. Under these constraints, glass manufacturers must enhance productivity to stay abreast of
market demands. To meet these challenges, experienced glass manufacturers agree that the industry must
change dramatically.
This review of glass melting practices in the United States has been based on the technical roadmap,
which was developed in consultation with GMIC-member industry glass engineers and scientists under
sponsorship of the US DOE–Office of Industrial Technologies (DOE-OIT). Aggressive and
challenging—but realistic—goals are defined to improve glass manufacturing by the year 2020.
Glass Industry Perspective
The consensus of glass industry scientists, engineers and manufacturers on the status of glass melting
technology and its role in manufacturing economics can be distilled into eight major concerns:
1. Capital and operating costs for melting must be justified by the quality required to be competitive
in the marketplace.
2. Energy savings are driven only by net cost savings.
3. Higher operating costs may be acceptable if higher capital productivity can be realized.
4. The technical and economic horizon of the glass industry is short term.
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