Hydrogen Cost and Carbon Analysis in Hollow Glass Manufacturing

Dario Atzori (), Claudia Bassano, Edoardo Rossi (), Simone Tiozzo, Sandra Corasaniti () and Angelo Spena
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Dario Atzori: Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
Claudia Bassano: Department of Energy Technologies and Renewable Sources, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development Research Centre of Casaccia, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Santa Maria di Galeria, 00123 Rome, Italy
Edoardo Rossi: Department of Chemical Engineering Materials Environment, ”Sapienza” University of Rome, via Eudossiana 18, 00184 Rome, Italy
Simone Tiozzo: Stazione Sperimentale del Vetro—The Italian Glass Research Centre, 30141 Venice, Italy
Sandra Corasaniti: Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
Angelo Spena: Department of Enterprise Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 15, 1-21

Abstract: The European Union promotes decarbonization in energy-intensive industries like glass manufacturing. Collaboration between industry and researchers focuses on reducing CO 2 emissions through hydrogen (H 2 ) integration as a natural gas substitute. However, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no updated real-world case studies are available in the literature that consider the on-site implementation of an electrolyzer for autonomous hydrogen production capable of meeting the needs of a glass manufacturing plant within current technological constraints. This study examines a representative hollow glass plant and develops various decarbonization scenarios through detailed process simulations in Aspen Plus. The models provide consistent mass and energy balances, enabling the quantification of energy demand and key cost drivers associated with H 2 integration. These results form the basis for a scenario-specific techno-economic assessment, including both on-grid and off-grid configurations. Subsequently, the analysis estimates the levelized costs of hydrogen (LCOH) for each scenario and compares them to current and projected benchmarks. The study also highlights ongoing research projects and technological advancements in the transition from natural gas to H 2 in the glass sector. Finally, potential barriers to large-scale implementation are discussed, along with policy and infrastructure recommendations to foster industrial adoption. These findings suggest that hybrid configurations represent the most promising path toward industrial H 2 adoption in glass manufacturing.

Keywords: H 2; glass; CO 2 emission; furnace; decarbonization; hard to abate; modelling evaluation; economy evalutation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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