Cristobalite Debut: Sifucel Opens Up New Business Field With Grenzebach
- Inauguration of Portugal’s first cristobalite plant
- Technology partner Grenzebach designed, built and, started up the plant according to the customer’s requests and requirements
- Portuguese silica specialist Sifucel taps into new value chain and new market segments with this factory
BAD HERSFELD/Germany. Together with Grenzebach, one of the world’s leading suppliers of process and equipment technologies, Portuguese raw material expert Sifucel has completed a technologically demanding project: Portugal’s first cristobalite production line. With this facility, Sifucel opens up a new market segment and strategically positions itself as a supplier of high-quality silicon dioxide products. As an experienced technology partner, Grenzebach provided the customer with ongoing support and assistance, from initial raw material analysis through to commissioning.
Sifucel: From Raw Material Supplier To Refiner
Sifucel has a deposit of exceptionally pure, high-silica sand. Through a pipeline dredging system, Sifucel efficiently and responsibly extracts its raw materials, ensuring the sustainability of its operations.
For years, this high-silica sand was supplied as a raw material. Today, Sifucel is moving further up the value chain. By entering the cristobalite production market, the company is expanding its product portfolio, creating higher-value solutions, and strengthening its position in global competition.
Sifucel – Sílicas, S.A. was established in 1965 and has been a member of Grupo Parapedra since 1995. The company is located in Rio Maior, Portugal, and processes high-purity silica sand and kaolin for national and international customers.
Technology From Germany: Grenzebach Supplies Production Plant
The collaboration began with a comprehensive material analysis, in which Sifucel submitted silica sand samples for testing at Grenzebach’s in-house laboratory. The samples were analyzed for particle size, purity, and reaction behavior. With the help of special additives, Grenzebach developed a tailored formula for the production process. At Grenzebach’s technology center, small quantities were produced using that formula, and the process was verified. The results were convincing: Sifucel chose the German equipment and systems supplier as its technology partner.
Grenzebach then designed, built, and started up the cristobalite plant step by step. The centerpiece of the plant is a rotary kiln in which the silica sand undergoes thermal conversion into cristobalite at approximately 1,500 degrees Celsius. The capacity is ten metric tons per hour.
“Sifucel had a clear vision and the right raw material—we had the technology and know-how. Together we have built a plant that is fit for the future and opens up new markets.”
The plant was officially opened in April 2025.
Wide Range Of Applications: Why Cristobalite Is So Much in Demand
Cristobalite is a high-quality, crystalline polymorph of silicon dioxide. It is characterized by high chemical purity, a white color, high temperature resistance, good light diffusion, and a low thermal expansion coefficient. It is thus used in a variety of applications: as a filler in plastics and engineered stone products, to enhance scratch resistance in paints and varnishes, to add shine and texture to ceramics and glass, or as a functional component in construction chemistry and cosmetics.
Economic Effect: New Opportunities For Sifucel
The new cristobalite plant marks a strategic milestone in the company’s development, as it makes Sifucel one of the few producers worldwide to manufacture this special product on an industrial scale. With the new plant, Sifucel not only extends its product portfolio but also opens up new export markets. Already, some 80 percent is exported to international destinations, including Europe, North Africa, China, Brazil, and the U.S.
The company has invested some 30 million euros in the project, supported by 1.38 million euros in EU funding under the Portugal 2020 program. Today, the plant operates at full capacity, utilizes state-of-the art technology, and puts Sifucel in a leading position in the cristobalite market.
Successful Model for Technology-based Cooperation in Industry
The Rio Maior project is a prime example of how close partnership, technological know-how and expertise, and entrepreneurial foresight can create new added value. Grenzebach is pleased to have been Sifucel’s journey partner in entering this new market segment. Mutual trust, an innovative spirit, and a shared vision for the future have always characterized our collaboration. “With the cristobalite plant, we have taken our business to a new level. Grenzebach has not just been a supplier to us but a true partner on this journey,” says Sifucel’s CEO, Manuel Pinheiro.
