PSR delivering net zero

PSR delivering net zero 

Parkinson Spencer Refractories received a "Delivering Decarbonisation 2025" award at the Ceramics UK Delivering Net Zero Conference.

The Delivering Decarbonisation Award, sponsored by ScottishPower, recognises the company's efforts to reduce emissions and manufacture ceramic refractories in a sustainable manner. PSR, being an energy-intensive business, has a number of ongoing projects and initiatives aimed at achieving our decarbonisation goals. This includes ‘Reducing Carbon Emissions in Refractory Production for the Foundation Industries’ project is being carried out in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University funded by the Henry Royce Institute. This project, which concludes in the coming months, will further research into dopant additives to refractory compositions to lower the sintering temperatures and times for refractories, therefore reducing the energy required and potentially increasing our manufacturing capacity.

PSR have just recently started a Innovate UK Knowledge Transfer Partnerships in collaboration with Aberystwyth University which will see a research associate based on site in Halifax over the following two years. The aim of the project is to develop an innovative computational platform incorporating machine learning (ML)/artificial intelligence (AI) techniques for the optimal loading of products in our kilns. The goal would be to significantly improve the loading efficiency of refractories inside the available space than currently used methods, thus maximising packing efficiency, thereby reducing the product carbon footprint of an energy-intensive industry. With product loading densities as low as 9%, there is thought to be huge potential for optimisation and therefore energy savings.

PSR are also a signatory on the Ceramics UK ‘Demonstrating Hydrogen in the Ceramics Sector’ project which aims to gain an understanding of the sintering of refractories and other ceramics using hydrogen and hydrogen/natural gas blends. This will see the company's refractories fired on the test kiln located at Glass Futures using combinations of Natural Gas and Hydrogen.