Poster: Optimization of Energy Efficiency and Heat Transfer in Float Glass Furnaces Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

The float glass furnace type continuously produces flat glass by pouring molten raw material onto a bath of liquid tin, resulting in high-quality, flat, and uniform glass. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) analysis is essential for understanding gas flow and heat transfer processes within the furnace. Gas consumption constitutes a substantial part of the furnace's operational costs, quantified as specific energy consumption (SEC) per kilogram of glass. Energy balance studies, enhanced through CFD simulations, are critical for optimizing efficiency, reducing costs, and lowering the carbon footprint. However, these studies involve complex equations related to heating, melting, heat transfer, cooling, gas circulation, ventilation, and insulation, with numerous variables not measurable by standard furnace instrumentation, which limits applicability in diverse scenarios. This work describes an industrial float glass furnace and its thermal and electric processes by numerically solving Navier-Stokes equations, the multiphase flow model using finite element methods (FEM). By incorporating CFD techniques, the heat distribution, temperature profiles, and energy utilization across furnace configurations can be accurately analyzed and compared.