Glass is one of the most ancient and versatile technologies in human history—and it remains essential in shaping the future of our planet and our people.
Today, glass is used in innumerable applications that support environmental sustainability, from solar panels to wind turbine blades to insulation. Glass is reusable and recyclable. And it replaces less sustainable materials such as plastic in thousands of everyday products.
But a key issue remains: Glass manufacturing is still an inherently carbon-intensive process.
Are you one of the many glass producers implementing sustainability solutions across the full production lifecycle? You need committed partnership from your suppliers to achieve your goals.
Decarbonization in the glass industry is a primary initiative
As we know, the formation of glass requires extremely high temperatures, and glass furnaces consume fuel and emit carbon dioxide. Thus, by its very nature, glassmaking has a heavy environmental footprint.
However, improvements that reduce carbon emissions in glassmaking also improve your profitability by reducing energy costs and enhancing production controls and output.
Decarbonization initiatives extend across the full production lifecycle and include:
Sustainability considerations when selecting borates
Because borates are an essential material in various types of borosilicate glass production, you need to consider material sustainability. Selecting the right borate product and the right borate supplier is key to improving sustainability outcomes.
Before you buy, ask these questions:
1. Does the borate product improve our process and support our decarbonization goal?
Borates have been used throughout history to improve glass properties. However, only relatively recently have we realized how much the type of borate affects both glassmaking process optimization and sustainability outcomes.
Recent research demonstrates that using a refined, concentrated anhydrous boron product delivers measurable benefits including reduction of:
- Melt temperature
- Energy consumption
- Buildup and corrosion in refractory
- Carbon emissions
You should have the confidence that the borates you use meet the highest standards for quality, stability, and consistency.
2. Does the borate supplier provide technical expertise to optimize our sustainability outcomes?
As regulatory bodies increase decarbonization requirements for glass manufacturing, you are probably investing in increasingly sophisticated sustainability solutions including:
- Optimizing furnace design and combustion
- Converting older furnaces to newer technologies such as oxy-fuel, hybrid, and full electric systems
- Improving thermal insulation and heat recovery systems
- Optimizing raw materials use
- Enhancing product formulations
- Increasing the use of recycled glass
To make the most of these targeted investments, collaboration with material suppliers becomes more important. A supplier with the technical expertise and industry experience to be an active partner in enhancing formulations, processes, and applications is only going to make the transition easier.
3. Does the borate supplier adhere to sustainability practices that complement our own?
Sustainability requires measuring the full environmental impact of a product—starting with the provenance of the materials that go into it. You should expect transparency from suppliers throughout the production lifecycle, including:
- Origin: Materials are sustainably and responsibly sourced and produced
- Traceability: Visibility into where your borates have been at every step of the journey
In addition, you need to require transparency into supplier operations, assuring that their partners meet the highest standards for supporting the planet, their people, and the communities in which they work.
Prioritizing sustainability from mine to market
Successful decarbonization of the glass industry requires commitment at every link in the production chain—not just inside the plant but extending upstream to the partners who supply raw materials and downstream to end users and recycling partners.
When you source borates for glassmaking from U.S. Borax, you’re working with a partner that delivers that commitment and is invested in helping you meet your decarbonization goals.
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our technical team about improving your glassmaking process, reducing carbon emissions, and creating a sustainable future for the glass industry.
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