GLASS FINISHING APPLICATIONS Flat glass production Flat glass is produced by melting sand together with other inorganic

ingredients and then forming the molten material into a flat sheet. The most common type of flat glass produced uses the soda-lime method with the main ingredient being sand (silica) and other constituents including soda ash, limestone, dolomite and cullet (broken glass, recycled in the process). The manufacturing steps include batching (the mixing of raw materials); melting; forming; annealing (to remove internal stresses); grinding and polishing (to achieve flat and parallel surface); washing; and cooling. Removal of the silicas, lime, metals, oils, acids, abrasives, and pollutants used in the production and finishing processes can be greatly enhanced by use of TWT Deposit Control Systems. Enhanced end-product quality, reduced production costs, as well as protection of process equipment investment is achieved. The addition of TWT Filtration Systems aid further in the management of the wastewater stream and effluent discharge issues. Water supply and wastewater management Sources of process and potable water municipal, abstraction wells, boreholes (quality of water is important, pre-treatment may be required depending upon initial quality and intended use). Large volumes of water needed for cooling and production purposes. Main wastewater sources from glass finishing processes - washing, quenching, grinding, polishing, direct contact with glass. Some processes may include machine cutting, alkali washing, acid polishing, acid etching. Major pollutants of concern: suspended solids, oil, pH, BOD5, total phosphorus, temperature. Also fluorides, and lead. Main wastewater sources from glass wool production: heating and curing. Major pollutants of concern: suspended solids, organics, binders, lubricants, coupling agents, pH control agents: pollution abatement if wet scrubbing devices used. Colored glass production may produce wastewater streams contaminated with heavy metals, e.g., vanadium, chromium and barium/lead etc.

Other types of glass production benefit equally as well

Contact TWT for details on how we can help with problems like these, enhance your production process, save natural resources, and improve your bottom line. Metalcasting and Glass Manufacturing are two of the nine vital "Industries of the Future" designated by The US EPA Office of Industrial Technologies. According to the OIT, these nine industries necessarily use large amounts of heat and energy* to physically or chemically transform materials. Collectively, they supply 90% of the materials vital to our economy, produce $1 trillion in annual shipments, directly employ over 3 million people, and indirectly provide an additional 12 million jobs at all skill levels. The U.S. metalcasting industrys annual energy use is estimated to be about 250 trillion Btus. Most of the energy is used for major operations such as melting, molding, and heat treating. The major fuels used are electricity and natural gas. Energy costs account for an estimated nearly 25% of the cost of diecasting products; for other industry segments, energy is estimated to account for 15% of total product cost. The energy efficiency of equipment used in U.S. foundries has been estimated at less than 45%. Cupola furnaces, still used by some iron casters, are less than 35% efficient. The U.S. glass industry primarily uses energy to supply heat to the glass melting furnaces in which the raw materials are melted and refined, with downstream processing used to ultimately form and finish glass. According to the most recent Manufacturing Energy Consumption Survey (MECS), the U.S. glass industry consumed 249 trillion Btu of energy in 1994, excluding energy used in manufacturing products from purchased glass. Energy purchases cost the industry $1.4 billion in 1997, about 5% of the value of shipments that year. Excluding the much less energyintensive products of purchased glass segment, energy purchases accounted for about 7% of shipments. Two-thirds of the energy used within the glass industry is used for process heating -primarily to heat the raw materials to transform them into the glass melt. Electricity is used to power equipment, as well as to light facilities. Energy generally accounts for approximately 8% to 12% of glass production costs. Energy efficiency is considered a critical priority of the glass production sector, and improving thermal efficiency in the production process is considered a critical core of this effort.