Ceramic and glass business news of the week for July 10, 2023

PLANTS, CENTERS, AND FACILITIES

AGC reports successful use of ammonia in glass furnace

Japanese glass manufacturer AGC succeeded in using ammonia as fuel for a glass melting furnace. This demonstration project was a joint technology development effort with Taiyo Nippon Sanso Corporation, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, and National University Corporation Tohoku University.

Newly acquired Lithoz 3D printer boosts Penn State’s advanced ceramics research

A recently installed Lithoz CeraFab Lab 3D printer offers materials researchers at The Pennsylvania State University the advanced capabilities to easily produce high-resolution ceramic parts and other innovative ceramics for cutting-edge materials research at a lower cost than sourcing them.

New Oregon State research center gets $72 million from Oregon legislature

The Oregon Legislature approved a $72 million bond to help fund the construction of the planned Jen-Hsun and Lori Huang Collaborative Innovation Complex at Oregon State University. The 150,000-square foot compound is expected to cost $213 million and will feature state-of-the-art facilities for research on semiconductors and artificial intelligence.

XtreeE expands global additive manufacturing network with three new 3D printing units

French large-scale 3D printing firm XtreeE announced the global deployment of three new connected 3D printing units. Operated by partners in Switzerland, the United States, and Japan, these sites bring the number of deployed 3D printing units up to 12.

O-I Glass makes Portland facility layoffs

O-I Glass plans to lay off 70% of its staff at the manufacturing facility in Portland, Ore. The company attributes the layoffs to declines in North American wine production and consumption. The layoffs are scheduled to begin on July 21.

ACQUISITIONS AND COLLABORATIONS

US and Sweden to partner on emerging energy research

The U.S. Department of Energy has partnered with the government of Sweden to advance fundamental research in fields like energy physics and fusion technology. This partnership builds off an earlier agreement the two countries signed in 2006.

University of Oregon joins semiconductor network in partnership with Micron

The University of Oregon joined the Northwest University Semiconductor Network, a partnership between the semiconductor manufacturer Micron and 13 universities across the northwestern U.S. that aims to train the semiconductor workforce of the future.

UW will launch materials engineering research initiative with major NSF sponsorship

The University of Wisconsin–Madison Materials Research Science and Engineering Center received $18 million from the National Science Foundation for an interdisciplinary exploration of fundamental questions in materials science. The grant provides six years of funding for the center, which will include collaborators at other institutions and in industry.

UTEP, PNNL partner to decarbonize material manufacturing

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and The University of Texas at El Paso are leveraging their long-standing partnership and joint appointment program to address the grand challenge of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from materials manufacturing.

NSF announces $6 million investment in semiconductor fabrication partnership

Through a new partnership, the U.S. National Science Foundation and the National Science and Technology Council of Taiwan invested $6 million in six joint projects for fundamental research on advanced semiconductor chip design and fabrication.

Marine Energy Research Australia spearheads wave energy hydrodynamics project

Marine Energy Research Australia, a research center at the University of Western Australia, will conduct an extensive study on wave energy hydrodynamics to accelerate commercialization. The center is joining forces with Swedish wave energy technology developer CorPower Ocean and industry partner Australia Ocean Energy Group.

OTHER STORIES

ACerS UK Chapter: Inorganic materials for resource and energy efficiency

The ACerS U.K. Chapter and the Transforming Foundation Industries Network Plus are organizing a one-day meeting at the University of Sheffield on inorganic materials for resource and energy efficiency. The meeting will take place August 30. The deadline for abstracts is July 15.

First Digital Partnership council held by the EU and the Republic of Korea

The European Union and the Republic of Korea held the first Digital Partnership council in Seoul, the Republic of Korea, to strengthen economic resilience. Both countries committed to cooperating on emerging technologies that were put forward in the EU economic security strategy.

DOE releases plan for free, immediate, and equitable access to federally funded research

The U.S. Department of Energy released a plan to ensure the Department’s federally funded research is more open and accessible to the public, researchers, and journalists. View the plan at this link.

MARKET TRENDS

India aims to produce first semiconductors within 18 months

India will break ground on its first semiconductor assembly plant next month and begin producing the country’s first domestically manufactured microchips by the end of 2024, according to a senior government official who is overseeing New Delhi’s $10 billion chipmaking foray.

China imposes export controls on two metals used in semiconductors and solar panels

The Chinese government announced buyers of two metals used in computer chips and solar panels will need to apply for export permits starting on August 1. The metals, gallium and germanium, are also used in military applications. China produces 60% of the world’s germanium and 80% of the world’s gallium.

Can a viable industry emerge from the hydrogen shakeout?

More than one thousand hydrogen projects are underway worldwide, of which more than 350 were announced in the past year. But to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050, another $380 billion will need to be invested in hydrogen by the end of this decade, on top of the $320 billion announced so far.

NEW PRODUCTS

New glass cuts carbon footprint by nearly half and is 10x more damage resistant

Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University filed a patent application as a first step toward bringing a new type of glass called LionGlass to market. LionGlass requires significantly less energy to produce and is much more damage resistant than standard soda lime silicate glass.

Rigaku further expands its handheld platform to maximize chemical analysis response

Rigaku Analytical Devices announced the launch of the CQL Max-ID handheld 1064 nm Raman analyzer. With an on-board library of more than 13,000 items, the CQL Max-ID can identify narcotics, explosives, toxic industrial chemicals, chemical warfare agents, and more—without the concerns of fluorescence interference.