Técnicas Reunidas participates in the decarbonization of ceramics by researching green hydrogen

Técnicas Reunidas leads the H2togreenceramics project: Applied research for the generation of alkaline electrolyzers that allow the decarbonization of the ceramic cluster in the Valencian Community (Spain), to promote decarbonization in the ceramic industry through researching in green hydrogen application.

Two technological centers from the Valencian Community (Spain) participate in the project, such as the Technical Institute of Ceramics (ITC, Castellón) and AIJU (Alicante), a company such as Proying XXI Ingeniería, dedicated to the manufacture of frit furnaces and burners, and an end-user company producing frits. All of them working together “close the value chain of the project, from the production of renewable hydrogen through electrolysis to its use in an industrial application”, as explained by Técnicas Reunidas.

This research is partially funded by the Department of Innovation, Industry, Commerce and Tourism of the Valencian Community within the framework of the Funding Program to promote strategic industrial projects in the Valencian Community.

Endowed with a budget of €2,125,303.99, of which the Generalitat Valenciana contributes with €850,121.60, the project has great potential to generate an efficient and sustainable solution that increases the degree of energy autonomy within the ceramic cluster.

Currently, this project is about to complete its first phase: the 50 kW alkaline electrolyzer developed in the project will be integrated into the ITC Low Carbon Plant located in Almassora (Castellón), specifically in the combustion chamber, given that the objective of this project is to integrate an advanced alkaline electrolyzer into a ceramic frit manufacturing company. 

Once the electrolyzer is integrated into the ITC pilot plant, the hydrogen generated by it will be led to the burner, where experimental tests will be carried out with the aim of studying the continuous operation of the electrolyzer-burner-combustion chamber system.

Subsequently, the aim of the project is to analyze the technical feasibility of partially or totally replacing natural gas with hydrogen as fuel in the firing of ceramic tiles.

In a second phase, based on the pilot-scale results, an advanced 500 kW electrolyzer will be integrated and installed in a ceramic frit manufacturing company, to validate the technology in an industrial environment.

In this case, a study will be carried out on a pre-industrial scale integrating both the hydrogen and oxygen generated by the electrolyzer into the company’s natural gas distribution network, making mixtures with hydrogen reaching up to 20% in volume, and carrying out all the necessary adjustments and adaptations to be able to safely operate an existing oxy-combustion furnace. Next, experimental tests will be carried out to melt frits.