The North West Hydrogen Alliance (NWHA) in the UK has welcomed glass-maker Pilkington as the newest member to its ranks.
Last year Pilkington completed a world first trial at its Greengate site in St Helens, Merseyside, where hydrogen was successfully used to produce float (sheet) glass as part of the ‘HyNet Industrial Fuel Switching’ project.Pilkington follow hot on the heels of Glass Futures who joined the NWHA last year and are developing a glassmaking Pilot Plant facility in St Helens to provide a Global Centre of Excellence for sustainable manufacture of glass.
Neil Syder, Managing Director at Pilkington Glass, said, “While glass is a sustainable, infinitely recyclable material it requires intense heat to produce. Reducing CO2 emissions and maintaining the security of energy supply for our furnaces will remain fundamental to our continued business.
“Hydrogen offers a real solution to decarbonising the glass manufacturing process and the recent trials at our Greengate Works site in St Helens proved that it can be successfully used to fire up our furnaces. This world first shows how the North West is at the forefront of innovation in industrial decarbonisation.
“We’re delighted to be joining the North West Hydrogen Alliance and working alongside other partners to help the region transition to net zero.”
Professor Joe Howe, Chair of the NWHA and Executive Director, Energy Research Institute at the University of Chester, said, “It’s widely recognised that hydrogen will be central to reaching net zero and nowhere is this more true than in the North West.
“As recent reports have shown, hydrogen is essential to decarbonising the North West industrial cluster by 2040 and can provide a viable alternative to natural gas in manufacturing, particularly for sectors such as glass that require high temperatures. H2 View - link - the dependably brilliant George Heynes - link - more like this (H2) - link - more like this (glass) - link
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