Integrating carbon capture and utilization into the glass industry: Economic analysis of emissions reduction through CO2 mineralization

Glass production contributes significantly to global CO2 emissions due to high thermal energy requirements and raw material consumption. As a difficult-to-abate industry, carbon capture and utilization or storage (CCU/CCS) will be necessary to achieve emission targets. Among various options, CO2 mineralization shows promise to simultaneously capture CO2 and convert it to valuable products. When caustic (NaOH) is used as the absorbent, a portion of the resulting sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) can be fed back to the glass process to replace soda ash, a major component of glass and a large source of indirect emissions. Although a combination of glass manufacturing and CO2 mineralization presents a novel opportunity for drastic CO2 emissions reduction, such a process has yet to be studied. This work uses detailed, optimized process models to perform economic and CO2 emission analyses of three cases for such a highly integrated CCU system. In each case, CO2 is captured and directly converted to NaHCO3 and/or Na2CO3 by absorption into a NaOH solution. The NaOH is produced via the electrolysis of sodium chloride, which generates the valuable byproducts chlorine and hydrogen. The results are compared to glass production with amine-based CCS. The mineralization cases are shown to have net negative CO2 emissions, between −152 and −528 kg CO2/ton glass, relative to the unabated glass process and Solvay process for Na2CO3. The discounted payback periods for the mineralization cases range from 3.8 to 6.0 years, while the CCS case has reduced emissions of 353 kg CO2/ton glass and a negative net present value at the end of 20 years. [Display omitted] •Novel integration of carbon capture and utilization with glass manufacturing.•Detailed process models used for design and optimization.•Considering avoided emissions results in a process with “net negative” emissions.•Economic analysis indicates profitability without a carbon tax or credit.