World first | German company produces optical glass using 100% hydrogen in a furnace

Schott, a German manufacturer, has achieved a significant milestone by conducting the first-ever production of high-quality optical glass using 100% hydrogen as a replacement for natural gas in a furnace. This groundbreaking "large-scale test" conducted in Mainz, Germany, has yielded promising results, with the company now in the process of analyzing the quality of the produced glass.

Project manager Lenka Deneke expressed optimism, stating that if the quality tests confirm the glass's correctness and its properties remain unchanged, hydrogen could indeed emerge as a viable technological alternative. The test utilized grey hydrogen due to the current shortage of green hydrogen, according to the company.

For Schott to transition permanently from natural gas to hydrogen in its furnaces, further extensive testing over the long term would be necessary, along with a consistent supply via a hydrogen pipeline. This transition would mark a crucial advancement towards the company's strategic objective of achieving climate-neutral glass production by 2030.

The optical glass, crucial for manufacturing optical lenses, prisms, and mirrors, underwent production with financial support from both the EU and the German government. Notably, this isn't the first instance of a company demonstrating the feasibility of producing glass using 100% hydrogen instead of fossil gas.

In 2021, Pilkington, a 200-year-old UK manufacturer, pioneered this technology, successfully producing thick architectural glass with 100% H2 without compromising product quality. Pilkington is now planning to utilize blue hydrogen from producer Vertex at the HyNet North West H2 cluster in northwest England.

Moreover, Pilkington is collaborating with four other glass manufacturers in the EU-sponsored H2Glass project, aiming to commence full-scale 100% hydrogen trials next year. These manufacturers include Slovenian bottle maker Steklarna Hrastnik, Italian glass-container manufacturers Vetrobalsamo and Zignano Vetro, and fibreglass maker Owns Corning in France.

Additionally, Encirc, another British glassmaker, intends to utilize blue hydrogen from the HyNet project to produce glass bottles starting in 2027, in partnership with beverage giant Diageo.