The furnace at Glass Futures’ Global Centre of Excellence in St Helens, UK, has begun continuous melting.
After a successful commissioning, Glass Futures transitioned to 24/7 operation.
The 30 tpd oxy-fired pilot furnace was lit earlier this year in June.
The organisation’s technical team is now running a series of experiments to understand the furnace’s performance under standard conditions.
These tests will set the benchmark for future trials with low-carbon alternatives such as hydrogen, biofuels, and hybrid electric boost, which are due to commence over the next few weeks.
This milestone builds on industrial trials conducted at the end of 2024 and early 2025, during which five different types of liquid biofuels were tested in glass and ceramic production.
These trials involved glass manufacturers Ardagh Group, Encirc, Pilkington UK, and O-I Glass, as well as DSF Refractories and Minerals.
The project was part of the government-funded Industrial Fuel Switching (IFS) projects, supported by the £1 billion Net Zero Innovation Portfolio managed by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ).
