Air Products (Lehigh Valley, Pa.; www.airproducts.com) has commenced supply of its integrated oxy-fuel solution to Chengdu Jin Gu Pharmaceutical Packaging Co., Ltd. in Sichuan Province, western China, for the production of pharmaceutical glass containers. By working with another leading glass manufacturer in China, Air Products once again demonstrates how its technology can help the industry reap multiple benefits, including reduced emissions and improved energy efficiency, productivity and glass quality.
Jin Gu is a leader in China’s pharmaceutical glass packaging industry, and its manufacturing process involves advanced technologies that include Air Products’ cutting-edge offering. Jin Gu’s successful oxy-fuel conversion with proven initial results sets an industry benchmark for the pharmaceutical glass market in China. These proven results will also serve as a strong reference for other glass manufacturers in the western region who are looking to address the increasingly stringent environmental regulations through innovative oxy-fuel technology.
China’s glass industry is accelerating the shift to more sustainable and healthier development with a key focus on environmental protection as the country has entered its 13th Five-Year-Plan period. In Sichuan province, the provincial government has recently issued the “13th Five-Year Environmental Protection Plan,” with the glass industry identified as one of the key focuses for emissions reduction.
“Air Products has enabled a long list of glass customers worldwide to become more productive, energy efficient, and sustainable. We are honored to be selected by Jin Gu to support their conversion from air-fuel to oxy-fuel combustion, and we are pleased to see the encouraging results immediately,” says, Brandon Fu, vice president, Asia Strategy, Marketing and Technology at Air Products. “This project also underscores our commitment to supporting the sustainable development of China’s glass industry. We will continue to leverage our innovative solutions, vast global experience, and deep local understanding to help more China glass manufacturers improve their environmental performance and overall competitiveness.”
Air Products’ integrated solution customized for Jin Gu encompasses the company’s Cleanfire mini HRi oxy-fuel burners, liquid oxygen, technical support on glass formulation improvement, and computational fluid dynamics simulations of the glass melting furnace to ensure smooth conversion under a tight schedule.
“Air Products has a strong reputation within the pharmaceutical and overall glass industry for their leadership and worldwide track record in oxy-fuel technology. We now get to experience this first-hand and are deeply impressed by their leading-edge technology, technical expertise and excellent service. Initial results during the commissioning phase have exceeded our expectations, such as significant nitrogen oxide emissions reduction, energy savings, and product quality improvement. We look forward to our continued cooperation on converting all of our furnaces to full oxy-fuel,” says He Yong, deputy general manager at Jin Gu.
In addition to Jin Gu, Air Products also provides its integrated oxy-fuel solution to other types of glass manufacturers, including fiberglass, glass containers for food and drink, and heat resistant glass for home appliances. Oxy-fuel technology is proven to bring multiple benefits such as over 50% reduction in oxides of nitrogen emissions, 10–20% in energy savings, about 25% increase in productivity, reduction of capital, and improvement in efficiency and glass quality.