Ceramic and glass business news of the week for October 23, 2023

PLANTS, CENTERS, AND FACILITIES

Refractories manufacturer RATH reduces CO₂ emissions by 70% in SiC production

At RATH’s Krummnußbaum plant in Lower Austria, two new vacuum nitriding furnaces, used exclusively to produce silicon carbide plates and bricks in a nitrogen atmosphere, are now being operated with electricity.

POSCO Future M cuts carbon by recycling waste refractories

South Korean battery materials maker POSCO Future M Co. announced its achievement in reducing significant carbon footprints by fully recycling waste refractories. The company processed 17,000 tons of waste refractories last year, leading to a reduction in carbon emissions by 30,000 tons annually.

Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen receives $1 billion for clean hydrogen hub

The Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen is slated to receive up to $1 billion in funding to launch a new hub to increase the production and use of hydrogen as a significant clean fuel source. This hub is one of seven across the country slated to receive funding from the Department of Energy.

US university deploys high density solar thermal system

Creighton University enlisted ELM Solar, the U.S. reseller of U.K.-based Naked Energy’s solar thermal and photovoltaic thermal systems, to equip a new student residence with solar heat collectors generating an annual peak capacity of 69.9 kW thermal energy.

China Glass Company plots Egyptian facility

China Glass Company plans to build a 500,000 m² glass factory in Sokhna Industrial Zone, Egypt, focused on glass for construction and photovoltaic units. The factory is expected to export 80% of its output.

Apply Carbon establishes mass recycled carbon fiber production facility

Apply Carbon completed the commission of a fully automated production plant for recycled carbon fibers, with an estimated capacity of 4,000 metric tons. Adjacent to the recycled carbon fibers facility, Apply Carbon set up a dedicated production area for recycled para-aramid fibers, with an annual production capacity exceeding 700 metric tons.

ACQUISITIONS AND COLLABORATIONS

Vedanta explores collaborations with Japanese tech firms as it plans to set up chip plant

Indian conglomerate Vedanta Group is exploring collaborations with Japanese technologies companies as it continues with its plan to set up a semiconductor fab in Gujarat, India.

ACE Green Recycling enters into Li-ion battery recycling research agreement with NREL

ACE Green Recycling and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory signed a cooperative research and development agreement to further develop and optimize ACE’s environment friendly and low cost lithium-ion battery recycling technology for recycling of graphite, lithium-iron phosphate, and other cathode active materials.

Volkswagen Group of America and UT Knoxville extend research partnership through 2028

Volkswagen Group of America signed a new master research agreement with the University of Tennessee, Knoxville to continue the research partnership at the Volkswagen Innovation Hub in Knoxville through 2028. The partnership currently supports 27 active research projects and has already produced 15 publications and multiple pending patents.

OTHER STORIES

Şişecam unveils US growth plans at soda ash conference

Şişecam’s CEO Görkem Elverici recently presented the glass manufacturer and raw material supplier’s goals and growth journey at the World Soda Ash Conference in Athens, Greece. He indicated that the company’s investments in the U.S. are the most important step toward its vision of serving the entire soda ash market globally.

Lynas to upgrade Malaysian rare earth refinery amid dispute over operating license

Australian miner Lynas Rare Earths says it will temporarily shut down most of its operations in Malaysia for upgrades while dealing with a legal battle with the Malaysian government over its operating license.

MARKET TRENDS

India establishes royalties for lithium as country pushes for energy transition goals

The Indian government has established royalty rates for the mining of lithium, rare earths, and niobium. The royalty rates for lithium extraction by mining companies will be fixed at 3% of the lithium prices published by the London Metal Exchange. Earlier this year, India announced the discovery of two lithium deposits in the country.

Advanced rotary surface grinders deliver ‘endless control’ and tighter tolerances

As the tolerances for ceramic grinding become tighter and production requirements more demanding, machine shops that take advantage of advanced, automated rotary surface grinders can meet or beat current productivity levels as experienced operators retire.

NEW PRODUCTS

SGD Pharma continues to innovate with extension of its ready-to-use Sterinity glass vials

SGD Pharma announced the latest expansion of its Sterinity range of ready-to-use Type I molded glass vials, adding 10 ml and 20 ml to its ISO portfolio. The full Sterinity portfolio now includes sizes 10, 20, 50, 100 ml ISO and 20, 25, 50 EasyLyo.

New AccuPyc from Micromeritics for true density measurement

Micromeritics Instrument Corp. released the new AccuPyc gas pycnometer, featuring innovative technology that makes it the fastest, easiest, most accurate system for measurement of true density.

Lithoz to present multimaterial 3D printer CeraFab Multi 2M30 at Formnext

Austrian 3D-printer manufacturer Lithoz will debut its new multimaterial 3D printer, the CeraFab Multi 2M30, to the public at the Formnext 2023 trade show in November. According to the company, the device can combine different materials, such as ceramics, metals, and plastics, into one component.