Institute of Glass and Ceramic Research and Testing: Activities and achievements

Dr. AJM Tahuran Neger Director, Institute of Glass and Ceramic Research and Testing, BCSIR

Dr. AJM Tahuran Neger
Director, Institute of Glass and Ceramic Research and Testing, BCSIR

Institute of Glass and Ceramic Research and Testing (IGCRT) came into being as the 4th mono disciplinary unit of BCSIR in the year 2001 through the up gradation of the “Division of Glass and Ceramic Technology” of BCSIR Laboratories Dhaka which was functional since 1955. At present full structural set up of IGCRT comprised six divisions: (i) Glass Research Division; (ii) Ceramic Research Division; (iii) Ceramic Raw Materials and Ceramic Materials Testing Division; (iv) Enamel Research Division; (v) Inorganic Pigment and Chemical Research Division; and (vi) Refractory and Structural Ceramic Research Division. Nevertheless, since inception, IGCRT is carrying out applied research with a touch of basic research focusing a number of areas e.g. glass, traditional and fine ceramics, pigments, composites, refractories, building materials and many other branches of materials science.
Being a specialized monodisciplinary unit of BCSIR, IGCRT aims to be a centre of excellence in the fields of glass and ceramic. Indeed the vision and mission of IGCRT are as follows:

Vision: To achieve the status of a Centre of Excellence by the year 2021 for market driven scientific, industrial and technological research & innovation in glass and ceramics technology.

Mission: “To conduct, promote and guide scientific, industrial and technological research focusing glass, ceramics and allied fields that optimizes the economic, environmental and societal benefits for the people of Bangladesh”.

Activities of IGCRT is not just confined with customary R&D projects but analytical services are also being offered to various public and private organizations, entrepreneurs and stakeholders especially dealing with the export-import business of ceramic wares, cement and allied fields. In addition to these activities IGCRT also conducts trainings programs and every year a good number of MS students are being supervised by the scientists of IGCRT.

IGCRT has a number of achievements in its credits which can be shown in the pie-chart.

Achievement of IGCRT
w Production of ceramic stain colors and glasses (black, pink, green, brown,white & transparent).
w A process for the production of house hold washing powder.
w A process for the production of artificial marble.
w Insulating buck from RHA
w A process for the production of Ceramic water filter candle
w Iron Oxide Pigments (Red oxide, yellow oxide, Black oxide)
w Zinc sulfate from zinc ash
w Zinc acetate from zinc ash
w Shawdesh arsenic Removal Filter from Ground water
w Food grade dicalciem phosphate
w Bone ash from weste cattle bone.
w Red Oxide from Mill-scale.