Displaying items by tag: Alternative Fuels

Honduras: Cementos Argos is investing US$23m on various projects including increasing its alternative fuels substitution rate. The cement producer is targeting a 12% refuse-derived fuel (RDF) substitution rate by 2030, the equivalent of 5500t/yr. If reached, this will reduce the company’s carbon footprint in the country by 14%. The company says it has also co-processed 1.5m waste tyres in Honduras. It has now signed a partnership agreement with Fundesur and Fundación Herco for the collection and delivery of 5,000 tires/month in Choluteca for co-processing.

Other projects Cementos Argos is working on include increasing the production capacity of its Piedras Azules cement plant and increasing the plant’s use of solar energy.

Peru: FLSmidth has secured a contract for the supply of a new pyro line for Cementos Pacasmayo’s Pacasmayo cement plant near Lima. The new line will give the plant an additional production capacity of 0.6Mt/yr. The supplier says that it plans to install a Cross-Bar cooler, low-NOx calciner, Jetflex burner, equipment for dosing and feeding and process automation. FLSmidth says that the upgrade will reduce the plant’s energy consumption and open new opportunities for the use of alternative fuel (AF).

FLSmidth’s head of projects and upgrades and senior vice president Anders Josefsen said “We are very excited to work with Cementos Pacasmayo on this project – not only on growing the business, but doing it in a sustainable way. The new line will be equipped with a state-of-the-art pyro system including several of our MissionZero solutions. With this, Pacasmayo makes a significant investment in future-proofing its production.” He added “The Pacasmayo project is a prime example of our capabilities within process design: ensuring the integration to an existing plant, while also demonstrating our ability to deliver equipment that meets demands for energy and fuel efficiency.”

France: Germany-based ThyssenKrupp has won a contract for the installation of a new 4000t/day clinker line at Ciments Calcia’s Airvault cement plant in Poitou-Charentes. The supplier expects the new line to double the plant’s clinker capacity while also reducing its CO₂ emissions. It is intended to replace the two existing lines at the site.

ThyssenKrupp will supply a 1200t/hr double-shaft hammer crusher, a longitudinal blending bed, a 370t/hr Quadropol QMR² 45/23 type vertical roller mill and a 10,000t tangential blending silo to process raw materials for the line. A single-string, five-stage Dopol type cyclone preheater with integral calciner will be supplied that is suitable to use with alternative fuels, with the possibility of conversion to oxyfuel in future. ThyssenKrupp plans to preassemble the preheater, reducing anticipated construction time ‘by several months.’ The plant also includes a Polytrack clinker cooler, a solid recovered fuel (SRF) preparation line and dedusting systems. Commissioning is scheduled for mid-2024.

No value for the project has been disclosed by Ciments Calcia or ThyssenKrupp. However, Ciments Calcia previously announced a proposed investment of Euro300m in January 2021.

India: UltraTech Cement plans to increase the production capacity at its Maihar cement plant by 50%. FLSmidth will carry out the expansion project, which also involves the installation of a new calciner and JetFlex burner along with other pyroprocessing equipment. The supplier says that the upgrade will facilitate greater alternative fuel substitution at the plant in Madhya Pradesh.

FLSmidth’s cement president Carsten Riisberg Lund said “We are pleased to continue our long-lasting collaboration with UltraTech Cement. With the new upgrades to the pyro sections, installing MissionZero flagship offerings, such as the low-NO_x calciner and JetFlex burner, UltraTech makes a significant investment in future-proofing its sustainable production.”

Indonesia: FLSmidth has won a contract for the supply of a new alternative fuel (AF) line to Indocement’s Tunggal Prakarsa cement plant consisting of a HotDisc-S combustion device and feeding systems. The supplier says that the line will enable AF derived from municipal solid waste (MSW) to replace coal at the plant.

Cement business president Carsten Riisberg Lund said that MSW processing is ‘a growing challenge in many parts of the world.’ He continued, “The cement industry is well-positioned to be part of the solution, and we see more and more cement producers successfully replacing fossil fuels with AF. I am very pleased that we can support Indocement in its sustainability ambitions in Indonesia, particularly at a site we helped to build in 2000.”

Canada: St Mary’s Cement plans to apply for a licence to substitute alternative fuel (AF) for a part of its coal, gas and petcoke fuel mix. The plant previously held a two-week AF substitution trial in May 2011. CBC News has reported that the subsidiary of Votorantim Cimentos will present its plan at an evening meeting for the general public on 18 November 2021. The company says that it plans to implement similar AF arrangements to those at its Bowmanville plant, where it uses 90,000t/yr of biomass, wood from construction and demolition and non-recyclable paper and plastics.

Environmental manager Ruben Plaza said "Lower CO2 emissions is the first consideration and, equally as important, the material has to be approved and available in sufficient quantities with a reliable and sustainable long-term supply."

India: Dalmia Cement has sought to acquire 2Mha of land from the government for use in bamboo production. The company plans to use the bamboo to produce bio-based alternative fuel (AF) for its cement production. BusinessLine News has reported that the company plans to obtain brownfield sites in order to restore them to grow the crop on.

Philippines: Holcim Philippines and its waste management subsidiary Geocycle have together inaugurated a waste processing plant and alternative fuels (AF) storage facility at the former’s Bulacan cement plant. The facilities consist of municipal solid waste (MSW) shredding equipment and a 5400m² warehouse. The installation is part of a US$2.41m investment by Holcim Philippines in the Bulacan plant, aimed at reducing its CO₂ footprint and increasing the circularity of its operations. The plant will produce its AF from MSW from the Boac municipality.

President and CEO Horia Adrian said “This initiative is part of our bigger commitment to make our operations more sustainable. These facilities will further reduce our carbon footprint and energy costs, while providing our partners with a safe and environmentally sound waste management option though our co-processing technology. We are excited to continue these projects to help us get closer to our long-term ambition of using 70% AF in cement production, instead of coal."

India: JK Cement has signed a strategic memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Punjab Renewable Energy Systems (PRESPL). Under the agreement, PRESPL will supply its technologies and forward-integrated value chain for use by JK Cement in scaling up alternative fuel (AF) substitution at its cement plants. The transition will focus on biomass-based fuel use.

Managing director Raghavpat Singhania said "As we embark on our journey towards decarbonisation, we commit to this MoU that allows us and PRESPL to build deeper synergies in the bio-energy sector.” He added that the agreement promised ‘a better future with a win-win for the environment, people and energy in India.’

Russia: Holcim Russia has committed to realising a 15% CO2 emissions reduction in its cement production between 2019 and 2030 to 475kg/t from 561kg/t. It plans to further reduce its cement’s CO2 emissions to 453kg/t by 2050, and to implement further measures to ensure its net carbon neutrality at that time.

Corporate relations director Vitaly Bogachenko said “The company's goal is to drastically reduce carbon emissions, and there are two working solutions for this. The first is the use of alternative fuels (AF) obtained from different types of waste: residues of municipal solid waste after sorting and extraction of all useful fractions from them, used tyres and others. The presence of biomass in them makes such fuels carbon neutral, so emissions during production are significantly reduced. The second solution is to replace carbon-intensive raw materials. For example, instead of limestone, we use slags. The 'recipe' for cement is completely different: thanks to the new composition and the lower temperature during the firing process, the carbon footprint in the production of cement is reduced.”