Heat Recovery and Thermal Equipment for the Glass Industry

In glass manufacturing (containers, flat glass, fiber, or specialty glass), melting furnaces account for the plant’s largest source of energy consumption. Flue gases leave the melting zone at extremely high temperatures, carrying valuable waste heat whose recovery determines the plant’s economic viability and compliance with environmental requirements.

AITESA designs, manufactures, and integrates advanced heat transfer and recovery solutions for the glass industry: heat recovery boilers (WHRB), air-to-gas heat exchangers for combustion air preheating (APH), thermal oil boilers/circuits, and recovery systems for integration into power cycles (steam/ORC).

Our solutions enable the recovery of waste heat from highly corrosive gas streams, drastically reducing energy costs, minimizing the carbon footprint, and extending the service life of filtration and purification systems.

Do you need to recover heat at a glass plant? Tell us about the temperatures, process gases, or equipment involved.

Challenges Faced by Glass Plants

Heat recovery from smelting furnace flue gases is not a conventional heat exchange application. It requires thermal and mechanical engineering capable of addressing the severe constraints of the glassmaking process:

• High-temperature gases and thermal shock: High-temperature flue gas streams that require the selection of refractory steels, alloys, and expansion joint designs.

• Contamination due to alkaline volatilization: Condensation and sublimation of volatile, condensable sodium sulfates on the tubes as the gases cool, creating adherent, insulating layers that reduce the overall heat transfer coefficient.

• Presence of corrosive gases and airborne particles: Corrosion caused by the entrainment of vitrifiable particles and corrosion caused by acidic components (, , fluorides), which require designs without dead zones and the integration of cleaning systems using air blowers or shot blasting.

• Continuous operation of the melting furnace: Glass furnaces operate in multi-year runs without shutdowns. The heat recovery system (heat exchanger, WHRB, bypass damper) must be designed to allow for online maintenance without compromising the furnace draft or melting stability.

AITESA supports the plant from the feasibility study and basic engineering through to supply, revamping, or turnkey EPC execution. We analyze gas cooling curves to prevent unwanted condensation points and design pressure drops () compatible with draft systems and resistant to fouling.

Why Choose AITESA for Glass?

With more than 40 years of experience in high-temperature projects for the process industry, AITESA offers the expertise needed to work in demanding glass manufacturing environments:

• Expertise in high-temperature applications: Proven experience in the selection of refractory materials and the mechanical design of tube bundles for hot gases and thermal media such as thermal oil or superheated water.

• Revamping and spatial integration solutions: Ability to install heat recovery modules (WHRB, APH, economizers) in flue ducts or highly confined spaces in operating plants.

• Seamless EPC execution: We take on unified management (thermal calculations, fabrication, gas bypass systems, instrumentation, assembly, and hoisting), reducing the risk of downtime and ensuring rapid system commissioning.

AITESA has participated in projects involving heat recovery, thermal oil, and thermal equipment for the glass industry in various industrial settings.

Success stories

Do you need to recover waste heat or upgrade heating equipment at a glass plant?

Please briefly describe your needs or the equipment involved. Our technical team will review the initial information and guide you toward the most appropriate solution.