Categories: Sustainability , Kanthal® Award
Published 25 Oct 2019

The steel and cement industries are striving to reduce their CO2 emissions by converting to fossil-free operations. Efficient electrical heating processes are enablers for this development. The Swedish innovator, NyCast AB, wins the Kanthal® Award 2019 for their heating innovation that has the potential to contribute to an industrial future without greenhouse gas emissions.

The Kanthal® Award recognizes innovations related to new solutions in sustainability, quality of life and energy efficiency; all with the purpose to make a sustainable world for coming generations. NyCast’s electrical heater can heat gases up to 1,100°C (2,012°F) with gas pressures above 10 bars, in less than a hundred milliseconds. One area in which this heater could be used is to pre-heat hydrogen for reduction of iron ore.

The jury's motivation

The motivation of the jury was: “Gas heating is an enabling technique for many new technologies including those related to reduction of CO2 emissions in the steel and cement industries. NyCast is nominated for its innovative and efficient high temperature gas flow heater with a potential to contribute to an industrial future without greenhouse gas emissions.”

With the Kanthal® Award, NyCast will receive worldwide recognition, a diploma, a statuette and 5,000 Euro to donate to a charity organization of their choice which supports the same criteria as the Kanthal® Award. NyCast has chosen to donate the prize money to the Swedish Childhood Cancer Fund.

Two prizes awarded this year

The Kanthal Award Ceremony was held in Stockholm, Sweden, on 24 October2019. Two prizes were awarded this year: NyCast AB won the Kanthal® Award for their electrical heater, and Lewis Print, Polymer Researcher at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, UK, won the newly instituted Kanthal® Student Award. By introducing a new element and modifying the existing bonding process, Print’s solution has a great potential to improve the design and production of Silicon Carbide heating elements.

The other two finalists for the Kanthal® Award were:

  • SRF (India) for their multi-zone reactor furnace that makes it possible to produce intermediate for next generation’s herbicide and fungicides.
  • centrotherm (Germany) for their low-pressure technology for energy- and cost-efficient production of tomorrow’s carbon fiber.

In connection to the ceremony, the finalists and guests were invited to an “Experience Day”, with speakers from Cementa, SSAB, centrotherm and Kanthal, as well as to a site visit at Kanthal’s production plant in Hallstahammar.