MICROWAVE ASSISTED ELECTRIFICATION OF HIGH-TEMPERATURE INDUSTRIAL PROCESSES IN THE CERAMIC, ASPHALT AND ALUMINIUM SECTORS

The METAWAVE project explores microwave-based heating as a low-carbon alternative to fossil-fuel-fired furnaces in energy-intensive industries. Applications include ceramic tile firing with plasma torches, asphalt production and recycling via direct aggregate heating, and aluminum anode baking through combined microwave–induction treatment. Numerical and multiphysics simulations demonstrate that these methods achieve homogeneous heating, required temperatures, and significant energy savings, supporting the decarbonisation of industrial process heating.