Across the industrial landscape there are healthy signs of commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. But some powder sectors have problems of their own and are needing to find unique and innovative ways of dealing with them
RACING FOR NET-ZERO
THE CHALLENGE FOR ZERO GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS BY 2050 IS ONE THAT ENVIRONMENTALIST HAVE BEEN demanding, scientists have been urging and increasingly, lawmakers have been insisting on. But there are those who say it’s a deadline we won’t meet, partly because for two decades we’ve been trying to solve the problem with new technologies that supply energy and allow industry to keep growing so we don’t have to change our lifestyles. And, even though there are some breakthrough options emerging, the fear is they will take time to deploy. Heavy industry is one of the key GHG emitters, with the
production of basic materials only last year estimated to account for 22 per cent of global CO2
emissions, making
industrial decarbonisation a top priority. Encouragingly, there are strong examples of collaborative projects, such as the Swedish HYBRIT Development joint venture, which created a mine-to-fabrication zero carbon steel process. Another is the UK Carbon Trust Offshore Wind Accelerator Program, which supported joint research on low-carbon options for key elements of offshore wind supply. But, individually, companies across the powders and bulk solids space are working hard to contribute, making a difference and inspiring others in the process. The French Materials and chemicals multinational Saint-Gobain is to spend €25 million on converting its existing plasterboard plant in Frederikstad, Norway, into the world’s first carbon- neutral plasterboard production operation, a project that
will increase the site’s capacity by about 40 per cent. The company cites rising demand in the local market as the incentive and says it will cut more than 20,000 tn of CO2 emissions each year as it becomes operational in 2023. Sweden’s Tetra Pak is already well on its way to becoming the world’s most sustainable packaging company. Not only has it pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions in its own operations by 2030, it decided to cap its 2020 emissions at the 2010 level, even though the company has grown more than 15 per cent – and managed an 11 per cent reduction in emissions at the same time.
THE TWIN CHALLENGES DEFINED It’s generally understood that sustainable manufacturing is defined by two principles: the process and the impact of whatever that process makes. Powder based, net-shape technologies, such as additive manufacturing and metal injection moulding, have significant effects on both. Powder metallurgy, for example, has long been
recognised to improve sustainability. And the unique material properties of titanium powder make it even more sustainable when used in emerging technologies such as Additive Manufacturing, or 3D-printing. An example is the Swedish engineering giant Sandvik’s newly launched Osprey titanium powders, which support the growth of 3D
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