Project snapshots and some info ...
- Geological survey, exploring mineral deposits, market research and
supply/demand analysis of raw materials for the glass industry -
Picture
1: checking the quality of drilling
samples.
- Glass furnace energy efficiency audit and optimisation of the
furnace control strategy to reduce the specific energy consumption -
Picture 2: batch charger of a small unit
melter furnace.
- Batch recipe optimisation, solving glass melt foaming problems and
improving the fining efficiency of a glass melt - Picture 3:
lab melting test, observing the different foaming behaviour between
two chemically identical glass melts at temperatures above 1400°C.
- Glass production energy efficiency assessment and energy consumption
reduction - Picture 4: fire polishing
being a minor parameter in the total energy consumption of table ware
glass production.
- Glass fibre and glass wool production optimisation and
trouble-shooting - Picture 5: IR
measurements of the bushing temperature distribution as poor
temperature homogeneity is often a cause of fibre breakage.
- Float glass quality problems, glass failure and glass defects
trouble-shooting - Picture 6: polariscope
analysis of stress caused by vitro-ceramics contamination in float
glass melting test samples.
- Technical assistance to food and beverage industry for container
glass design, glass container quality specifications and glass
packaging trouble-shooting - Picture 7:
light-weight and glass packaging optimisation for a world-top brewery;
development of full 3D design of bottles including capacity and weight
optimisation calculations.
- Glass production and glass quality follow up at the glass plant,
statistical quality control, glass quality audits for food and
beverage industry - Picture 8: a very
small filament (i.e. a hair-like glass string) at the inside of the
finish, a highly critical defect, totally invisible for the automatic
inspection was intercepted and eliminated 'at the source' avoiding a
critical needle-shaped glass particles contamination of beer bottles.
- Batch recipe and glass chemistry optimisation studies using lab
tests. Melting and dissolution processes of different batches were
analysed. These tests proved to be very useful comparing the melting
and fining efficiency of different batches, testing or verifying the
benefits of using one raw material compared to another and/or
analysing or verifying the benefits of new raw materials
introductions. Our melting test procedures enables to determine the
intermediate crystalline phase steps of the glass melting process and
to determine the velocity of the dissolution and glass melt generation
process. - Picture 9: melting tests -
nine batch samples in an electric furnace.
- Studying the batch-glass transition process; batch melting and glass
melt forming efficiency improvement studies - Picture 10:
batch - glass-melt sample for glass transition process analysis
- Glass furnace melting and fining trouble-shooting; assessment of
furnace design and furnace operation - Picture 11:
small glass furnace for luxury fragrance and cosmetics bottles.
- Improving the glass forming process and glass forming defects
trouble-shooting - Picture 12: infra-red
image of a table-ware forming process.
- Improving the pack to melt ratio of container glass production -
Picture 13: bottles being reheated before
entering the annealing lehr.
- New colour production assistance eventually including lab melting
tests for unique 'first time made' colours e.g. grey, purple, cobalt
or copper blue, black, ...; glass chemistry, raw materials selection
and batch recipe elaboration; colour change assistance and follow-up
of the first production of the new colour. - Picture 14:
Perfect quality olive green glass bottles made for the first time at a
Middle East glass plant.
- Glass melting and fining trouble-shooting; solving blister and/or
seeds problems; solving chemical and physical reboil problems -
Picture 15: microscopic detail of
blisters.
- For both glass recycling companies and glass manufacturers using
high cullet ratio batches, it is extremely important to have an
excellent accurate and precise cullet quality control procedure. Using
our unique in-house developed statistical calculation program, we give
you a clear insight in the risk percentage to accept a non-conform
cullet quality for a given QC procedure. Using statistical
calculations, we optimise and improve the cullet quality control
procedures used at the glass plant and/or at the cullet treatment
plant to reach a wanted level of precision and accuracy. - Picture 16: the operating characteristics curve
calculated for a cullet quality control procedure showing the
producer's risk and the consumer's risk of a cullet quality control
procedure that could be significantly improved.
- Lab glass melting tests for melting and/or fining improvement; new
batch formula and new raw materials or unique glass colours
development, etc... - Picture 17: glass
sample taken out of the lab furnace for further analysis.
- Definition and elaboration of new, exclusive glass colours for
high-end container glass production. - Picture 18:
a unique dark purplish colour for exclusive liquor bottles.
- Technical evaluation of glass furnaces and glass production process,
glass furnace performance audit and/or energy efficiency benchmark
using our database containing hundreds of records of glass furnaces
from all over the world. - Picture 19:
inside a container glass furnace with highly corroded AZS refractories
and an almost completely corroded barrier wall.
- Glass melting process audit, analysing and optimising the glass melt
flow pattern, minimum residence time and/or temperature profiles in
furnace and forehearths - Picture 20:
inspecting the glass melt at the spout.
- Colour change assistance and colour change procedure optimisation
using our vast experience from dozens of colour changes. Using our
batch recipe modification procedure and furnace settings strategy, we
minimise transition time, glass quality losses (blisters, foaming,
...) and 'out of colour specs' production losses. In favourable
conditions, using our advanced techniques for redox changes and
applying overdose techniques,the transition time can be less than 12
hours for a 100tpd furnace - Picture 21:
samples from a very fast colour change.
- Glass technology assistance to food and beverage companies, solving
glass packaging problems, reducing glass breakage and/or giving
independent advice, assistance or glass technology training. - Picture
22: analysing the scuffing of beer bottles
and advising a world top brewery for improving the glass coating to
minimise the scuffing of their returnable bottles.
- Improving glass quality of table-ware e.g. extra clear flint glass
production; solving glass quality problems and eliminating glass
defects. - Picture
23: fabrication defect on the base of
stemware.
- Glass breakage expertise; expert witness; glass breakage assessment.
- Picture 24: detailed study of all
parameters having impact on the glass breakage throwing bottles and
jars in large glass recycling containers. Based upon the results of
this study, an improved design of these recycling containers was
elaborated and tested. Results showed a significant decrease of the
glass breakage. Glass recycling companies highly prefer bottles and
jars with a low degree of breakage as unwanted impurities like
ceramics and vitro-ceramics can be sorted out much more efficiently.
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