Carboglass: Transformative Engineering Materials for Reduced Energy and Waste Consumption in Advanced Manufacturing Processes

The overarching goal of this project is to establish the technological potential, through a proof - of - concept study, of an entirely new family of glassy materials which could safely and stably incorporate high levels of CO2 by locking it away within the structure of the material in a stable form that is resistant to air, heat and light. In doing so it is believed this will present multiple new properties and in so doing this will enable transformative industrial changes in the way we manufacture, use, recycle and think about glass. There are three main pathways to academic and commercial impact: (1) UK glass industry and community (the primary route); (2) Multiple UK manufacturing sectors, specifically electronic devices and photonics; and (3) UK nuclear industry, specifically waste immobilisation and site license companies. Carboglass could provide multiple new innovation platforms for advanced materials and manufacturing technologies; carbon capture and storage; nuclear decommissioning; and energy and CO2 emissions reduction, thereby impacting upon policy, health and quality of life; delivering the capability to disrupt existing business models and contributing towards a more resilient, productive and prosperous nation. This research could lead to new technologies that provide the UK glass industry with CO2 emissions savings of up to 50% (1.25MT/yr) and increase resource efficiency by up to 20% (1 MT/yr, saving £100M/yr). It could also provide a new path for treatment of carbon-rich radioactive wastes, and could become a leading carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. This disruptive development could lead to new high-skilled UK jobs and offer a technology platform for uptake by other industries. The proposed research will take the form of 3 work packages (WP's) that will lead to proof-of-concept, as follows: WP1. CO2 incorporation (Months 1-20). Determine key chemical, structural and processing factors governing CO2 incorporation in materials. Materials incorporating CO2 will be produced. Outcomes: relations mapped in model systems, boundaries defined. WP2. Composition / structure / property relations (Months 3-24). Map relations in model materials with focus on CO2 incorporation and physical / chemical properties. Outcomes: fundamental understanding of effects of CO2 incorporation on material properties and structure achieved. WP3. Carboglass technology development (Months 12-24). Build / disseminate understanding of research needs to enable development of Carboglass technology towards high volume manufacturing. Outcomes: clear understanding of research needs for development of Carboglass technology, with initial upscaling designs disseminated widely to academic and industrial partners. Public benefits of this research will include improved environment and quality of life (lower CO2 emissions and energy use; safer nuclear waste, new functional materials leading to new products and processes); disruption of business models (UK jobs and wealth creation); and raised public interest in science and technology. Carboglass represents an opportunity for the UK to lead the world in new, clean and green technologies and simultaneously provides multiple new pathways for a resilient, productive and healthy UK.

There are 3 main pathways to academic and commercial impact: (1) UK glass industry and academic community (primary route); (2) Multiple UK manufacturing sectors including electronics / photonics communities; and (3) UK nuclear industry, specifically waste immobilisation and site licensees. Carboglass could provide multiple new innovation platforms for advanced materials and manufacturing technologies; carbon capture and storage; nuclear decommissioning; and energy and CO2 emissions reduction, thereby impacting upon policy, health and quality of life; delivering the capability to disrupt existing business models and contributing towards a more resilient, productive and prosperous nation.
Several UK research programmes will benefit from the proposed research, including the National Graphene Centre (graphene and Carboglass both make novel use of carbon) and the National Composites Centre (Carboglass could be a new fibre reinforcement material). The research will address multiple EPSRC themes: Manufacturing the Future (Sustainable Industrial Systems, Frontier Manufacturing, Innovative Production Processes), Energy (Energy Efficiency, Nuclear Power) and all 3 NERC Societal Challenge themes. Several EPSRC Future Manufacturing Research Hubs (Photonics, Composites Manufacturing, Continuous Manufacturing & Advanced Crystallisation), the Sir Henry Royce Institute and the EPSRC DISTINCTIVE Programme will all benefit from this research as development of novel technical glasses impacts on these fields in terms of chemical materials discovery, novel / improved manufacturing processes, multifunctional materials, nuclear engineering and radioactive waste management. It will form new collaborations and multidisciplinary research directions between materials, manufacturing and geology. UK and global glass science and technology communities will benefit as the project will develop the first new family of technical glasses since the 1960's-70's, thus Carboglass will open up fresh, potentially revolutionary research themes and directions. The manufacturing community will benefit as the application of pressure and high temperature to for Carboglass will require novel manufacturing solutions, driving new developments in manufacturing.
If successful, this industrially-focussed project will be taken forward by industrial partners including the British Glass Manufacturer's Confederation and Glass Futures and their members (all 13 major UK glass manufacturers) including glassmakers Guardian Industries (flat glass) and Encirc (container glass); furnace designers (TecoGlas); with partners in high temperature / pressure operations (Siemens, Johnson Matthey); with the National Nuclear Laboratory and key academics from aligned EPSRC Hubs, Networks and Programmes. It is intended that prototyping and demonstrator technologies will be developed and demonstrated by 2022, with 25% commercial uptake by the UK glass industry by 2025 and adaptation and uptake by the UK and nuclear decommissioning industry by 2030. The UK glass, nuclear and other manufacturing industries will thus directly benefit from the proposed research. Future investment will be sought to subsidise scale-up and roll-out to the UK's 22 major glass production facilities, to deliver maximum environmental and commercial benefits across the UK glass industry and adaptation to the UK nuclear industry.
Public awareness of the research and its potential benefits will be raised through broadcast and print media. Public engagement activities will be undertaken, e.g. Science Cafés, schools outreach programmes and involvement with local / national media, e.g. TV, radio, press and interviews providing expert opinion, using, for example, "The Conversation". Public benefits of this research will include health and quality of life (lower CO2 & energy use; safer nuclear waste); disruption of business models (jobs and wealth creation); providing a more resilient, productive and prosperous nation.