ABB and Salt X target emissions-intensive industries with electric plasma process

An industrial process that replaces fossil fuel-driven heating with renewable electricity, while also capturing emitted carbon dioxide, could make key emission-intensive industries cleaner, according to two partners.

Swedish-Swiss engineering firm ABB and Swedish green tech company Salt X signed an agreement to enable further development of technologies in the electric arc calcination (EAC) process today (11 March).

Manufacturers of cement and quicklime, highly sought after materials in construction and process industries, currently have no realistic alternative to fossil fuels for high-temperature heating up to 900ºC, the partners said.

EAC, on the other hand, “makes it possible to reach several thousand degrees Celsius,” they said. The electric plasma solution, which uses renewable energy, reinvents the industrial calcination used to heat materials to high temperatures. ABB will contribute control and electrical systems for the technology.

Michael Marti, business line manager at ABB Process Industries, said: “The technology benefits are two-fold – replacing the use of fossil fuels through renewable electricity in the calcination process, and enabling cost-efficient capture of the carbon emissions at the same time. It will be a highly effective way of curbing lime production emissions.”

The companies started a collaboration for electrifying calcination in 2022. A new Salt X research and test facility was built last year.

Want the best engineering stories delivered straight to your inbox? The Professional Engineering newsletter gives you vital updates on the most cutting-edge engineering and exciting new job opportunities. To sign up, click here.

Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.