Iberdrola is working with Spanish ceramic tile company Porcelanosa on a project to reduce carbon emissions in tile manufacturing that combines renewables, green hydrogen and heat pumps.
The GreenH2ker project has recently been submitted to the European Innovation Fund Small Scale programme.
It is designed to optimise waste thermal energy and replace up to half of the natural gas currently being used as fuel with green hydrogen and heat pump technology.
The technologies will be used to create the necessary high temperatures in the furnace of the Porcelanosa factory in Vila Real, allowing the company to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2351 tonnes a year.
An electrolyser powered by solar power will be incorporated into Porcelanosa’s facilities.
The heat pump technology will make use of excess waste heat and heat from the production lines.