Significant attention in recent years has focused on new burners and furnace design issues for glass making, especially oxy-fuel. This presentation will review principles involved in the melting of raw materials into glass and how combustion considerations should relate to resultant operating productivity, efficiency and glass quality.

An overview of the Industries of the Future will be provided, focusing on the Glass Industry Program. The general role of cross cutting technologies will be described, followed by a discussion of overall activities in the Combustion Program. The presentation will conclude with specific examples of combustion technologies being developed for the glass industry.

Title: A Glass Furnace Combustion and Melting User Research Facility

Presenter: Bob Gallagher

The Combustion Research Facility at Sandia National Laboratories, Livermore CA has been selected by the US Department of Energy’s Office of Industrial Technologies as the location for its Glass Furnace Combustion and Melting User Research Facility. Designed to take advantage of the advanced combustion and high temperature diagnostics already available within the CRF, the facility will be available to all segments of the US Glass Industry. Operated by Sandia, the glass user facility’s research agenda will be developed and executed in a collaborative manner with industrial partners. While it is envisioned that much of the work will be of a pre-competitive nature, provisions will be made for company funded proprietary work as well. A DOE approved board of industry representatives will provide oversight.

Research on the following aspects of furnace performance is envisioned: 1) Measurement of gaseous species concentrations in the combustion space, 2) Progress of batch reactions and melting, 3) Combustion control, and 4) Sensors. Other areas will be added as the needs of industrial participants dictate. Visits by industry engineers and scientists lasting from a few hours to many months will be encouraged.

Title: Future Burner and Furnace Design Challenges

Company: Fusetech, Inc.

Ceramic welding allows an opportunity to talk with furnace operators and observe different furnace designs during production. This is a short synopsis of operators’ remarks and observations made on furnaces. It is hoped that this may help explain some of the problems operators still face, and possible design aids.

Advanced Oxy-fuel and Air-fuel Combustion Technologies

Title: A New Air Gas, Low NOx Burner for the Glass Industry

Presenter: Daniel B. Wishnick

While oxy fuel technology generally takes center stage at any glass group gathering, a large sector of our industry still relies on air gas technology. To support the air gas sector, a new air gas burner has been designed to meet low NOx requirements and improve the combustion performance of current day installations. This presentation will discuss air gas technology and the development path for this new burner.

to Improve Quality of Glass Melting

Presenters: Neil G. Simpson and Dan Ertl

The energy savings and potential increases in melting capacity related to Oxy-Fuel combustion in glass melting furnace applications has been previously identified. This paper highlights the improvements in glass quality which can be achieved specifically related to the selection of oxy-fuel burners and placement in the glass melter. With reference to case studies, the importance of burner angles in maximizing heat transfer and obtaining glass quality improvements will be discussed. The experiences gained are valuable in the development of the next generation of Oxy-Fuel burners.

This effort presents laboratory tests and industrial results of a novel flat flame oxy-fuel burner designed for glass melting applications. The unique aspects inherent with a separated jet flame design include lower mixing velocities, massive entrainment of combustion products into the flame core and staged combustion. The paper highlights key operational results such as higher productivity, lower refractory (crown and side-wall) temperatures, lower volatilization, lower particulate and NOx emissions and improved batch line control.

A high-luminosity oxy-gas burner has been developed to provide high radiation heat transfer to the glass and low NO_x emissions. Soot precursors are formed by precombustion and direct mixing. The soot is formed and burned out in a flat flame with fuel-rich and fuel-lean zones. Commercial prototype burner testing is scheduled for this spring at Eclipse Combustion and this summer on an Owens Corning fiberglass furnace.

The Cleanfire HR burner is the oxy-fuel burner of choice by many glass manufacturers, especially for high quality glass melting. The burner provides a low momentum, luminous flame for enhanced heat transfer to the glass. A new development, the Cleanfire AOF burner (patent pending), permits both air-fuel and oxygen enriched air-fuel combustion of natural gas and fuel oil. This paper will describe the new technology and discuss how it can ensure continuity of glass production in the event of oxygen supply disruption.

Company: Praxair

Through much of the 1990’s increased experience with oxy-fuel firing of glass furnaces has driven new technology development in several directions. Initiatives have been undertaken to improve burners, extend refractory life, reduce emissions, increase productivity and recover waste energy. These technologies have been evaluated on an individual basis as glass manufacturers look for improvements to their process. Results from some of these individual initiatives will be discussed and the benefits of utilizing two or more of them in a single furnace will be reviewed.

Questions/Answers

Title: Combustion Control by CO/NOx Sensoring and Prediction of Volatilization and for the Reduction of NOx Emissions and Na–Volatilization In-situ

Company: TNO

CO-monitoring is a useful technique. In the paper I will present the development of a measurement technique for the CO in-situ sensor, based on a near IR-laser absorption principle. Next to this I will present the effects of reducing atmosphere on the Na-volatilization.

ACSI has developed a new control algorithm called RSC (Real-time Statistical Control). RSC is based on the application of statistics to real-time process control. This strategy has proven beneficial for in-glass conditioning applications, such as in-glass temperature control, automatic cooling control, and melter temperature control.  RSC utilizes standard SPC rules and applies them in real time to make adjustments in the control system.

Traditional control systems for glass production facilities are obsolete from a cost and technology standpoint. This paper analyses three available options for achieving the same degree of control on glass processes. The control systems analyzed are DCS, PLC/HMI and the newer Hybrid controls. Engineering, programming and operational requirements are reviewed. The economics for initial installation and lifecycle costs are compared for all three options.

Title: Supervisory Advanced Control for Temperature Stability, Increased Productivity, Energy Efficiency and Reduced Emissions

Company: Glass Services, Ltd.

Authors: Erik Muysenberg and Josef Chmelar

The present state of furnace control in the glass industry is poor, therefore the potential increase in benefits by advanced control based on Expert Systems is high. These supervisory systems can increase temperature stability, productivity, energy efficiency and reduce emissions together with less operator actions.