January 2009 Irish Cement forced to defend alternative fuels

Some 2.5M tyres could be burned in the new kiln at Irish Cement’s (IC) Platin plant – so when is an incinerator not an incinerator? That was the question Drogheda Borough Councillors wanted answered at council meeting on 1 December 2008. The answer, according to the IC representatives, Brian Gilmore, Colm Bannon and Barry Leonard, who were briefing councillors on the company’s plans to burn alternative fuels, is when it is a cement kiln. IC’s representatives were at pains to stress the difference between an incinerator – whose purpose is to destroy rubbish by burning it – and IC’s plans to use alternative fuels in the forms of chemically specified materials, eg, chipped tyres and meat and bone meal, to generate the heat needed to produce cement.

They described the plans for the new kiln 3 as a ‘fuel swap,’ whereby 30% of the company’s energy requirements would come from burning unrecyclable materials rather than coal and oil. Irish Cement’s environmental directors Colm Bannons said that this would reduce CO2 emissions, avoid waste going to landfill and secure the 250 jobs at the Platin plant.

Sinn Féin councillor Matthew Coogan raised questions about fly ash and dangerous gases, while Labour councillor Gerald Nash declared that whether or not Irish Cement’s plans amounted to an incinerator was a matter of opinion. Mr Bannon responded by saying that all fly ash would be turned into cement and emission limits are set to ensure there is no impact on human health.

January 2009 Lafarge honoured for its ecological efforts

Lafarge North America’s Davenport cement plant has received honours from the Wildlife Habitat Council, a national organisation that brings business and conservation efforts together to create wildlife habitats, and from Ducks Unlimited, which conserves wetlands and waterfowl areas.

Nalin Joshi, environmental manager at the Davenport plant, said: “The projects reflect the cement company’s commitment to conservation on its land and green technology to the extent possible. It makes use of alternative fuels in the cement kiln to reduce the use of coal and collects stormwater run-off in ponds formerly used in the cement-making process. The water is recycled to clean equipment. We try to re-use as much as possible in order to reduce the need for more emissions.”

January 2009 Cemex report shows alternative fuels progress

Cemex UK has launched its first Sustainable Development Report to build on its corporate reporting framework, which was launched in 2006, and shows that improvements have been made in a number of areas, among these the increased use of alternative fuels, which rose by 52%.

During 2007, Cemex UK increased the use of alternative fuels to part-replace fossil fuels, such as coal, to heat its cement kilns. This included chipped tyres and Climafuel, which is derived from household and commercial waste. 2007’s energy recovery from Climafuel alone meant that more than 12,500t of waste was saved from landfill. This is equivalent to the waste that more than 35,000 people – equivalent to the population of a small town – sent to landfill every year. Based on the biomass content in the alternative fuels used, the company also saved more than 14,500t of CO2, the equivalent to the annual CO2 emissions of nearly 6000 cars.

December 2008 Japan’s NEDO offers alternative fuels support to the Malaysian cement industry

Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organisation (NEDO) has offered its alternative fuel combustion technology as a source of energy generation for the Malaysian cement industry. Specifically, NEDO has proposed the use of oil palm biomass and waste tyres as this energy source. The Malaysian plantation industries and commodities minister, Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui , said this was being done in collaboration with the Cement Industries of Malaysia Bhd (CIMA). “With this technology, I am sure the cement industry, which is heavily dependent on energy, could utilise these materials in an efficient and environmentally-friendly manner,” Chin said.

“If the technology proves successful, it could set the stage for other companies in Malaysia to consider this cost-efficient technology propagated by NEDO,” Mr Chin added. Mr Chin also said that CIMA, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Negeri Sembilan Cement Industries, will be working with Japanese company Taiheiyo Engineering Corp to implement the project.

NEDO president Takahiko Yamamoto said the project between CIMA and Taiheiyo is expected to be completed in 2020 at a cost of US$10.4m. CIMA will bear about 30% of the cost. Upon completion, the plant is expected to produce 1.3Mt/y of cement.

December 2008 Lindner Recyclingtech takes 2nd place at awards show

Lindner Recyclingtech GmbH has won second prize at the Carinthian Innovation and Research Awards 2008 for its Power Komet secondary waste shredder for refuse-derived fuels (RDF). This was Lindner’s second award in as many years; in 2007 Lindner came third for its Heavy Fraction Separator HFS 1200.

According to Lindner, the Power Komet’s ‘outstanding attribute’ is its ‘exceptional drive system with centrifugal mass.’ This principle was first discovered by Leonardo da Vinci in the 15th century and has been used by Lindner to create a shredding system that is characterised by low energy consumption, increased reliability, simplified maintenance and an optimised cutting system. Lindner claims that 20-50% energy savings are possible with the Power Komet.

Other notable features of the Power Komet is its ‘dynamic’ design; the drive guards are made of glass fibre-reinforced plastics. This contributes increased security, lower operational noise as well as a more aesthetically pleasing design.
The Power Komet was first launched in May 2008 at the International Trade Fair for Water, Sewage, Refuse and Recycling (IFAT) in Munich, Germany. Lindner has since sold 13 Power Komet units, with 90% of these shredders exported abroad.

December 2008 UK£700m deal to tackle waste in Cumbria could be a bonus for cement plants

A UK£700m plan to revolutionise the way Cumbria deals with household waste will be considered by county councillors. Under a proposed 25 year deal with waste company Shanks Cumbria, two UK£20m waste treatment centres will be built at Hespin Wood, near Carlisle, and at an unnamed site in Barrow. The centres, known as mechanical biological treatment (MBT) plants, dry out and separate rubbish to recycle as much as possible, dramatically reducing landfill. Much of what is left is compacted into solid recovered fuel (SRF) which can then be sold to businesses as a cheap alternative to gas or coal. Other waste can be used as compost to cap landfill sites or as aggregate for the construction industry. About 10% is sent to landfill.

Shanks currently operates a similar waste treatment process at is plant in Dumfries, Scotland. The process is controlled from a computerised nerve centre overlooking the body of the plant. Waste is dumped at the front door by bin wagons, or by larger trucks from transfer stations. The waste is immediately sprayed with water, before being scooped up by a mechanical grabber and shredded.

The shredded material is transported along a conveyor belt to a drying hall where it is left for about two weeks. Air is drawn through the waste by fans, which causes the biodegradable element of the waste to break down and generate heat – up to about 60°C – which dries it out. About 20-25% of the waste mass is lost through evaporation during the process. The air then goes through a biological filter before being released into the atmosphere. Metals are plucked out of the mass by magnets, while glass and stones are removed by screens. At the end of the process, the waste is reduced by about 25% and is completely sanitised and de-odourised. It can then be compacted into 10m-long bales of fuel for use in energy-intensive industries. The fuel contains about two-thirds of the calorific value of coal.

Shanks and Cumbria County Council are in discussions with four unnamed companies about using it as an alternative fuel. Cement kilns are the main destination for the bales produced at Dumfries, although Shanks actually pays them to take it at present. It is anticipated that as the market matures the product will become saleable.

November 2008 CPCC given green light

California Portland Cement Co (CPCC) has been given permission to use alternative fuels at its Colton cement plant in California. The decision followed a concerted public information campaign in order to gain acceptance of its plan. Presentations on the environmental benefits of the fuel project were made to all mayors and city managers in the region, and all gave their full support. An additional part of CPCC’s efforts included a re-dedication of a huge 20x38ft American flag that now flies over Mt Slover in Colton. Attending the event were the mayor, city manager, the city council members, Assembly man Joe Baca and Congressman George Brown.

The alternative fuel project was approved by the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) without negative public comment. News of the flag raising made the front pages of numerous publications and was covered by NBC’s southern California outlet. Stories ran in 20 weekly newspapers, as far away as Houston, Texas.

November 2008 ACC given permission to continue waste co-processing

ACC Limited has decided to extend waste management solutions to local industrial units in the steel city and its adjoining areas. The director of ACC’s alternative fuels and raw materials business Ulhas V Parlikar said that a facility for waste management would soon come up at Jhinkpani in the West Singhbhum district. ACC runs a plant at Jhinkpani, about 80km from Jamshedpur.

“We have started approaching the units to collect the industrial wastes for co-processing at the cement kiln in Jhinkpani plant. The expertise for co-processing services would be provided by Holcim, an expert in the co-processing of waste,” said Mr Parlikar. He said they have identified 26 types of industries all over the world whose wastes can be co-processed. Co-processing in cement kiln is the most advanced technology for safe and effective disposal of hazardous and other wastes.

Country head of Holcim, Ramesh Suri who accompanied Mr Parlikar, revealed that it has already started providing waste management solutions to industries based in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. In addition, the company has received approval from the state pollution control board for the co-processing of industrial wastes at Jhinkpani. The company would also approach municipal bodies and notified area committees for collecting the municipal wastes so that it can be co-processed at the cement kiln.

November 2008 Irish Cement meets resistance in its plans to adopt MBM at its Platin plant

Fears about the use of meat and bone meal (MBM) to fire the new kiln at the Irish Cement plant at Platin, outside Duleek, have been expressed in the local community, as the company starts the planning process to replace some of its fossil fuels with alternatives. Concerned locals who learned of the company’s plans claim the Platin and Duleek areas have now become the dumping ground for “heavy controversial industries that nobody wants in their back yards.”

Irish Cement has announced plans to reduce its dependence on imported fuels by replacing them with alternatives, including MBM. The company recently invested Euro200m in a new kiln at Platin, which will be operational before the end of 2008. The company will shortly lodge an application with Meath County Council to seek permission for the use of fuels such as solid recovered fuels (SRF), which are fragments of plastics, paper, cardboard and textiles, as well as chipped tyres and sterilised MBM. They say they operate to world-class emission standards and that the new extended facility will improve efficiency, reduce the plant’s carbon emissions and protect employment.

Pat O’Brien of the ‘No Incineration Alliance’, who has campaigned against the Indaver incinerator which is currently under construction nearby, described Irish Cement’s plans as “a second incinerator for Duleek.” O’Brien said: “People here are concerned. It seems that now Indaver has been granted planning permission for the incinerator, we will get all the industries that other areas don’t want,” he said. “We need a lot more information on these fuels and whether or not they are safe. Will there be a meaningful consultation with local people, or are we just going to be told what is happening? We want a chance to make submissions and get involved in the process.”

Mr O’Brien called for a regional office of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be opened in the area to monitor emissions from the cement plant and the municipal incinerator. “Self regulation is no regulation and we need the EPA to have a presence here,” he said. The company points out that the new facilities at Platin will allow it to shut down the older equipment on-site, helping improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions.

A spokeswoman said Irish Cement hoped to reduce its carbon footprint even further by replacing some of its imported fossil fuels with alternative fuels. She said alternative fuels have been used by the cement industry throughout Europe for the past 30 years and Irish Cement intends to achieve up to 25% of fuel substitution at Platin over the next three to four years. She said that because cement kilns are extremely efficient at capturing the energy from all fuels, no wastes are produced during the process and the new kiln will operate to world-class emission standards because of the installation of state-of-the-art bag filters.

Irish Cement has sent newsletters to its neighbours outlining all recent developments at Platin and has invited them to visit the plant on Saturday 8 November 2008 with tours of the premises beginning at 10am.
Councillor Tom Kelly said the proposal would have to be examined in great detail and he would be taking an active interest in it. He said that it was essential to establish whether or not the new fuels would be safe.
Councillor Jimmy Cudden said the new facility at Platin would improve the plant and bring it to a more modern standard. Duleek resident and member of the Fianna Fail national executive, Sharon Keogan, said she had no major reservations about the project. “Not only will it be safer and cleaner, but together with EPA and the neighbouring community, we hope it will be monitored regularly,” she said. However Sinead Burke, the Sinn Fein candidate in 2009’s local elections, described the company’s proposals as “very worrying.”

October 2008 Lafarge gets the go-ahead to use ‘carbon neutral’ fuel

Following a successful evaluation process which has demonstrated major environmental benefits, Lafarge Cement has received the go ahead to use meat and bone meal (MBM) on a permanent basis as part of its fuel mix for cement manufacture at its Hope Works. Glacier, the resource recovery company owned by Lafarge Cement, has been supporting trials of the ‘carbon neutral’ fuel during the last two years and now, having proven the environmental savings, permission has been given by the Environment Agency. The company is using MBM to replace some of the traditional fuels, for example ground coal.

Hope Works manager, Ashley Bryan, said: “We are delighted to receive this permit which means we can continue to use MBM as a sustainable fuel on an ongoing basis. During the evaluation period we used over 16,000t of MBM and, as a result, have achieved a reduction in CO2 emissions from the plant of more than 25,000t. In addition, we have reduced the amount of virgin fossil fuels we have to use so MBM really is a double win for the environment.”

John Pickering, commercial manager for Glacier added: “Our business is committed to researching and sourcing waste-derived fuels as part of the cement industry’s drive to increase the sustainability of its operations. MBM – a fibrous material made from fallen farm stock, waste meat and meat products – is categorised as ‘carbon neutral biomass’, meaning it will help Lafarge Cement further reduce emissions of CO2, associated with climate change.”

“The Lafarge Group uses MBM in 16 plants worldwide, so we have essentially demonstrated the use of proven technology here at Hope,” added Pickering. Lafarge Cement’s Hope Works expects to be able to use MBM to replace up to 30,000t of fossil fuel a year. This is enough to provide electric power to 9000 houses for a year.

October 2008 Nappies for fuel

The Devil’s Slide Cement plant in Utah is using tyre scraps and nappy off-cuts to create energy. This innovation helps the Devil’s Slide Cement plant save almost US$1m/y. Plant manager Keith Krugh says: “Of our total operating costs, fuel is roughly one-third”. Much of the waste plastic is from the Kimberly Clark Huggies factory nearby. They dump the waste into the burners that preheat the limestone to about 2000°C. This recycling process reduces coal usage by 30%.

October 2008 Cement mill wants permission to burn alternative fuels

Oglesby mayor Tony Torres has announced that the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency is seeking permits to burn nontoxic alternative fuels at Buzzi Unicem’s cement plant. However, he said that this won’t affect the announcement made by Buzzi on 26 September 2008 that it would lay off up to 89 of its 104 workers from 1 December 2008.

September 2008 Rubbish fuels the future

Cemex’s Euro43.5m factory planned for Southam quarry will produce fuel made out of rubbish. The 16-acre site, for which Cemex submitted a planning application last week, would receive local waste in enclosed buildings. After shredding, it would be fed into enclosed vessels, where air is pumped to encourage rapid break-down.

Known as mechanical biological treatment technology (MBT), the process accelerates the work of bacteria to produce a dry and clean material. It is intended that the product, Climafuel, would then be burned at the company’s Rugby site. Cemex aims to produce at least 250,000t/y of Climafuel from 300,000t of household, commercial and industrial waste. The plant would also blend up to 124,000t of Climafuel brought in from manufacturers outside the county.

However, concerns over the move have been expressed. Conservative county councillor John Appleton said: “This will have an impact on all residents living in the Southam area. My principal concern is the transport arrangements - the routes taken by vehicles to and from Rugby. And for that matter they will be manufacturing fuel from rubbish which is brought in from outside Warwickshire.”

28 August 2008 Cemex mixes sustainable manufacturing with profitability

Cemex is collaborating with DOE’s Industrial Technologies Programme (ITP) to improve energy efficiency at several of its US cement plants. The partnership between Cemex, one of the world’s largest cement producers, and ITP is already producing energy savings in several of the company’s plants. These savings result from upgrading inefficient electric motors and improving the efficiency of motor-driven pumps, fans and compressed air systems.

For instance, staff at Cemex’s Davenport, California, cement plant used DOE’s MotorMaster+ software tool to evaluate motor inefficiency; they found that 13 of the plant’s electric motors required upgrading. These upgrades are saving the company US$168,000 in annual energy costs while increasing reliability and production. What’s more, Cemex is actively participating in several Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) Save Energy Now energy assessments, bolstering its commitment to sustainable and environmentally responsible manufacturing while improving the bottom line.

23 August 2008 100-day test starts on solid waste disposal

A memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the Phillipinno city government in Iloilo, Holcim Inc, Environment Management Board (EMB)-Western Visayas and GTZ-SWM4LGU was signed on 21 August 2008 to start a 100-day segregation test run of plastic solid wastes from the Calajunan dumpsite to the Holcim cement plant in Lugait, Misamis Oriental in Mindanao. Mayor Jerry P. Treñas said the plastic wastes will be used as alternative fuel by Holcim in cement processing. Treñas said the recovery of alternative fuel and raw materials will minimise the volume of wastes at the city dumpsite.

The recovery of the plastic wastes will also integrate the waste pickers and reclaimers into the intended site improvement of the Calajunan disposal facility. Treñas assured that more than 300 waste pickers at Calajunan will continue to earn their living from alternative livelihood opportunities such as bag and flower making to promote effective solid waste management aside from solid waste reclaiming at the site.

Early this year, Holcim was able to get some 20t of solid wastes from Calajunan for a fuel test at the Holcim cement plant. The 100-day segregation is expected to gather more than 200t of wastes that will allow a more open space at the dumpsite. Treñas said Iloilo City has a standing plan to develop the clean-up area as an ecological park and to house several buildings and the material recovery facility of the dumpsite.

The Calajunan dumpsite is more than 50 hectares and most of it is already enclosed with concrete fence to prevent animals and scavengers from scattering the disposed solid wastes collected from houses, hospitals, schools and public markets. Iloilo City is collecting more than 160t of garbage everyday, which more than 50% of the wastes are plastic materials. Holcim is interested in the plastic wastes to be used as alternative fuel. On the other hand, SWM4LGU under the GTZ will provide technical assistance to the city. Holcim will allocate P365,000 to defray the expenses of the 100-day segregation test.

EMB-Western Visayas will assign personnel to monitor the test run and assist the evaluation of test results to utilize the test experiences through the DENR regional ecology center. This will enhance its partnership and resource sharing with other local government units. Signing the MOA are Treñas, Dr. Johannes Paul of GTZ-SWM4LGU, Holcim AFR department head Ernesto Paredes and EMB Regional Director Bienvinido Lipayon. The signing was witnessed by William Sumalinog of Holcim, Engineer Raul Gallo of DPS and Marissa Segovia of ICSWMB.

20 August 2008 Higher mercury emissions detected

A spike in mercury emissions last year from Lafarge Canada's Richmond cement plant has sparked concern among North Delta residents who live downwind. Preliminary numbers show the Lafarge Canada plant on No. 9 Road released 167kg of mercury into the air in 2007, making it the country's seventh worst emitter of the toxic metal alongside coal-fired power plants and a smelter. A Lafarge spokesperson claims the numbers it submitted to the federal pollutants database were miscalculated, and that it was trying to correct the mistake.

"It's another one of those invisible killers," said Don Hunt, spokesman for the Sunbury Neighbourhood Association. "People expect that the government is watching over this kind of thing. But I've found it's not necessarily the case." Hunt noted air emissions from Lafarge drift into North Delta on the prevailing westerly winds. He said the pollutants add to the cumulative load potentially affecting area residents. "It's another straw on the camel's back," he said. "There's Deltaport, there's the cement plants. There's the South Fraser Perimeter Road. Somewhere they're going to bring in a garbage-burning facility."

Mercury is an extremely toxic element linked to neurological and developmental disorders. It doesn’t decay, accumulates in the fatty tissues of living organisms and can enter the human food chain. Silvano Padovan, a senior officer in Metro Vancouver’s enforcement division, said Lafarge's permit allows it to release 0.15mg per cubic metre of class 3 metals, which includes mercury. He said test readings peaked at 0.20 milligrams in March of 2007, but four subsequent tests from last October through April show the metal emissions have dropped back to previous levels of around 0.0003mg per cubic metre. "We're confident it was an anomaly," Padovan said of the high result. "We will look into it further." He confirmed Lafarge uses some 'alternative fuels' like tyre-derived fuel and wood waste separated from municipal garbage. But he said most of the fuel used in the plant is coal with low levels of mercury content.

Metro Vancouver monitors environmental emissions from industry and Lafarge is required to hire an independent firm to take a three-hour sample of its emissions every three months. The company has previously been in compliance with its mercury emissions limits. Lafarge has been charged with seven environmental offences in connection with the venting of cement dust from its silo in February of 2007. Lafarge Canada environmental manager Claude Brule said the Richmond plant is greener than most because of a US$175m retrofit a decade ago.Another US$800,000 is being spent to install a continuous monitoring system to record actual emissions of many substances around the clock, but Brule said there's no reliable test for mercury.

Environmental groups are pressing for better monitoring of mercury emissions from cement plants – something UBC associate professor Werner Antweiler also says is needed. Antweiler said he’s unaware of any studies of the effect mercury emissions have on either a facility’s immediate surroundings or further downwind. He said it’s imperative to know not only how much mercury is being spewed into the air, but precisely where it winds up and what kind of impact it is having. “We need to have more monitoring," Antweiler said, arguing regulators haven't put enough resources into guarding against mercury. It should have a higher priority in my view, as do other metallic toxics, because they are among the most dangerous, even in small quantities," he said. “There has to be more concern (of pollutants in urban areas) because a lot more people are affected by the same emissions.”

He said the issue is complicated by the competing jurisdictions that handle environmental enforcement at the federal, provincial and municipal levels. “Canada doesn’t really have a very strict policy on mercury, as far as I’m aware.”

20 August 2008 Nexterra biomass gasification ready to displace fossil fuels in lime kilns and boilers

After two years of biomass gasification testing at the company’s Product Development Centre in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, Nexterra Energy Corp has confirmed that renewable synthesis gas, or 'syngas,' produced by its gasifier has the ability to displace at least 6% of fossil fuels used in lime kilns. Depending on the biomass feedstock and existing equipment configurations, 95% substitution may be possible at many pulp mills, and up to 100% in certain types of boilers.

The ability to convey syngas from where it is produced and combust it inside existing thermal process equipment could lead to dramatic cost and CO2 emissions reductions in a number of industries. The system could be used in multiple industrial applications including pulp mill lime kilns, power boilers, rotary dryers and calciners commonly found in mineral processing, mining, cement and ethanol production industries.

“Nexterra’s direct fire biomass gasification system is now ready for demonstration at commercial scale,” said Jonathan Rhone, Nexterra President and CEO. “Once proven at this scale, we plan a full commercial rollout for industries such as pulp and paper, wood products, mining and others that want to reduce operating costs while lowering their carbon footprint. Up to now, these customers were limited to using either natural gas or fuel oil. Syngas offers a cheaper, carbon-neutral and renewable fuel alternative.”

Nexterra’s first generation gasification systems are close-coupled with heat exchangers to generate hot water, steam or hot air. The new direct fire application enables customers to decouple the process by producing syngas in one location and combusting it elsewhere on a site. The product development program included process simulation of end user equipment, as well as testing of specialized syngas conveying, pressurization and burner equipment at Nexterra’s test facility.

Nexterra’s technological breakthrough makes the switch from fossil fuels to syngas an attractive option for North America’s more than 100 kraft pulp mills and other industrial sites which face record high natural gas prices and, in British Columbia’s case, new carbon taxes.

Installation of a Nexterra direct fire gasification system at an average sized commercial pulp mill lime kiln, for example, has the potential to reduce natural gas consumption by more than 800,000 gigajoules (GJ) per year, the equivalent amount of natural gas needed to heat 5000 residential homes. In addition, such a system could save a mill several million dollars annually and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 25,000t per year.

16 August 2008 Garbage may fuel fire at cement plant

St. Marys Cement in Ontario, Canada, is looking to fire up its kiln with garbage in an alternative fuels demonstration project and held a public meeting this week to let residents know about it. During a 36-day demonstration project, St. Marys wants to substitute 13% of the conventional fuel with garbage. Three specific fuels would be used: paper sludge left over from recycling, plastic film leftover from composting and leftover plastics from the processing of recycled paper.

"This is all material that has gone through recycling already and normally goes to landfill," said Martin Vroegh, environmental manager for St. Marys Cement. The garbage would total 1% of the material in the kiln. More than 90% of the material in the kiln would remain the limestone that's transformed into the cement. Currently, the Bowmanville plant uses coal and pet coke which is leftover from oil refining process to fuel the plant.

St. Marys held a public information session for residents on 13 August 2008 as part of the process necessary to obtain a permit for the demonstration. If approved by the Ministry of the Environment, the demonstration would run in November and December and the results of it would eventually be publicly released.

Mr. Vroegh said using the alternative fuel could reduce air emissions for compounds such as sulphure oxides (SOx) and said the plant already has pollution controls. As well, the company would conduct stack testing and air quality monitoring.

"What we want to reiterate is this is a one-time short duration project that we hope will improve our air emissions," he said, adding other parts of the world burn similar material in kilns. If it works and we get the results we're looking for, we would be required to conduct an environmental assessment before going further."

Residents attending the public information session had lots of questions for the company, most of them focused on human health. Bowmanville resident Valerie Bowering brought a page and a half of questions with her to the event. She said there are a lot of unknowns about burning alternative fuels.

"What scares people is lack of knowledge about the types of compounds that could be emitted and how it affects our health," she said, adding she thought the company did a good job of answering her questions. "I'm going to take (the) answers and further do some research," she said. Jeff Cowan, who lives up the road from the plant, is also wary about the project. "There hasn't been anyone I know of that's been able to burn garbage and not have any fallout," he said.

Some residents accused the company of being motivated by profit, not concern for the environment. "If you can do something good for the environment and make it profitable, why shouldn't you do that," sad Mr. Vroegh, adding the economic downturn, especially in the United States, has been bad for business. The company has been closed for four months already this year, when the normal total is about three weeks.

St. Marys will host another information session on 10 Sept from 7.00pm to 9.00pm at 410 Waverly Rd. S., Scarbourough, Ontario.

13 August 2008 Chemical dosing test rigs remove pollutants

Braby has developed skid mounted, modular, chemical dosing test rigs to remove pollutants and reduce landfill; preventing harmful chemical waste from being released into the surroundings.One of the UK's largest manufacturers of stainless steel and aluminium silos, Braby, has developed skid mounted, modular, chemical dosing test rigs for treating industrial waste The test rigs remove pollutants and reduce landfill; preventing harmful chemical waste from being released into the surroundings

Bristol-based Braby have developed several test rigs, currently at cement and incineration sites across the country, in which trials of many commonly used chemical compounds can take place before customers place long term investments.

Alternative fuels, such as tyres, waste and industrial by-products are often now used in the generation of energy and manufacture of products. However, these cheaper alternative sources of energy produce harmful waste gas streams, which if left untreated can lead to serious pollution problems. To meet stringent European wide legislation, these pollutants must be cleaned before their release into the atmosphere. By dosing various re-agents into gas streams and conducting reactions at temperature which change chemical composition, harmful pollutants can be neutralised and removed from the waste stream.

"Assisting customers who introduce new materials to their environmental process is a key part of Braby's offering," said Paul Mayer, sales and marketing director of Braby. He continued: "Working in partnership with an organisation with the relevant experience gives customers reassurance that process changes they are using fully comply with EU regulations".

The test rigs are available for short term hire and can handle a wide range of materials at various rates. The rigs can be run in manual mode, where rates per minute or hour are set, or alternatively the PLC can adjust the feed rate as required, relative to gas monitor emissions feed back.

11 August 2008 Rugby factory to produce fuel out of rubbish

A UK£35m factory planned for Southam quarry would produce fuel made out of rubbish, contrary to an earlier report in the press.The 16-acre site, for which Cemex submitted a planning application last week, would receive local waste in enclosed buildings. After shredding, it would be fed into enclosed vessels, where air is pumped to encourage rapid break-down

Known as mechanical biological treatment technology (MBT), the process accelerates the work of bacteria, to produce a dry and clean material. It is intended that the product, Climafuel, would then be burned at the company's Lawford Road site, in Rugby. The multi-national corporation aims to produce at least 250,000t of Climafuel every year from 300,000t of household and commercial and industrial waste. In addition, the plant would blend up to 124,000t of Climafuel brought in from manufacturers outside the county.

However, concerns over the move have been expressed. County councillor John Appleton (Conservative, Southam) said he would seek reassurances after concrete giant Cemex submitted an application to build the 16-acre factory at Southam quarry. Cllr Appleton said: "This will have an impact on all residents living in the Southam area. My principle concern is the transport arrangements - the routes taken by vehicles to and from Rugby. And for that matter they will be manufacturing fuel from rubbish which is brought in from outside Warwickshire."

"I don't have too many concerns about the procedure itself, as I accept the findings of the Environment Agency.
"But one thing's for sure: I will be putting my views to the regulatory committee when it meets." Another application, for an alternative site at Malpass Farm in Rugby, will be handed in within the next three weeks.

Cemex chiefs say the Climafuel is a cleaner, greener energy-source that replaces fossil fuels and cuts carbon emissions. The Environment Agency gave the company the go-ahead to use Climafuel - which is made up of household waste - as a partial substitute for coal at its Rugby plant last October.

Rugby in Plume campaigner, Lilian Pallikaropoulos, has already lost more than UK£90,000 of her own money fighting the decision to burn rubbish at Cemex's HQ in Rugby. She said: "Why don't they hand in both applications at the same time? I think they're trying to draw the process out so that people will lose interest and not bother fighting. The problem in Rugby is that people in the most deprived wards will be affected. The poorest areas are situated just a few miles down wind of the proposed site."

As part of a six-month trial the firm, which also burns tyres to generate power, were allowed to burn no more than 15t/h, and to replace up to 30% of conventional fuel sources. Cemex has admitted the development would mean more lorries accessing the site - with about 11 extra loads a day. But it also promised there'd be no increase in noise or emission levels. The applications will be followed by consultations with local people.

7 August 2008 Specialist to be keynote at mineralogy congress

Roger Meier of Panalytical will deliver a keynote speech at the forthcoming 9th International Congress for Applied Mineralogy (Icam) to be held 8-10 September 2008 in Brisbane, Australia. His presentation opens the 'Analytical Techniques and Automated Instrumentation' section of the Icam technical programme Meier is market segment manager building materials and minerals at Panalytical.

The focus of his talk will be 'XRD-referenced Rietveld analysis of clinker and cement when using alternative fuels and raw materials'. This examines the importance of X-ray diffraction (XRD) in the cement industry, looking at how the development of ultra-fast detectors (Panalytical's X'Celerator and Pixcel,) has enabled XRD to move into the process control arena.

Complementing X-ray fluorescence (XRF), which delivers the elemental analysis that is important when using alternative fuels and raw materials, XRD determines the crystalline phases of species present in clinker and cement samples. The nature of these species directly affects the mechanical strength of the finished cement and must be tightly controlled to ensure optimal performance.

6 August 2008 Cemex plan to make sustainable fuel

Building materials manufacturers Cemex has announced plans to build a new plant to turn household and commercial waste into a new sustainable fuel called Climafuel. The new plant will either be on the group's former cement works at Southern or next to the works at Rugby and could divert up to 75% of Warwickshire waste from going to landfill.

The investment, which is estimated to total UK£35m, would create 25 full-time jobs, Provided permission is granted, the Climafuel plant would have the capacity to receive around 300,000 tonnes of local waste per annum, to satisfy approximately 60% of Rugby works' Climafuel needs.

CEMEX are submitting two applications to Warwickshire County Council, one for a Climafuel plant at Southam, and one for a plant in Rugby, although only one will be built. The idea is to give the council the chance to decide which of two equally suitable options best meets local community needs and those of the Warwickshir'e County Council's future waste strategy.

Cement-making is energy intensive and involves heating up kilns to at least 1400 degrees. Increasing the use of alternative fuels made from waste is therefore key to saving fossil fuels for future generations.

Alternative fuels are also more economical and have significant environmental benefits, including a marked reduction in emissions of oxides of nitrogen, which in Rugby have reduced by more than 40% since the plant introduced chipped tyres as a fuel in 2005. Alternative fuels, such as tyres and Climafuel, also contain a proportion of carbon neutral biomass content, thereby reducing the carbon footprint of the cement-making process. The Climafuel produced at the proposed CEMEX plant could contain at least 50% biomass and displace nearly 180,000t of fossil fuel CO2 in Rugby, the same emissions as 72,000 cars produce in a year.

Provided planning permission is granted, CEMEX plans to enter into an agreement with a specialist waste management company to run the plant, which could be up and running by 2010.

6 August 2008 Portasilo provides a biomass handling system to reduce emissions

When Ferrybridge Power Station, part of Scottish and Southern Energy’s UK operation, decided to investigate powering its vast boilers with organic, carbon neutral  “biomass” fuel, the UK’s leading bulk storage and handling systems specialist, Portasilo Bulk Handling Systems, was identified as the perfect partner to deliver the solution.

Biomass fuel is a volatile and potentially explosive material, that requires specialist skills and equipment to store, handle and burn safely. Portasilo developed a tailored handling system to address the unique challenges of the Ferrybridge site, incorporating high-performance components from across its product range.

The biomass wood pellets are delivered into tipping booths, from where six Portasilo Augerflo variable-speed feeders transfer the product into a pipe conveyor. This fully enclosed conveyor protects the volatile pellets from moisture and is ideal for transporting material over long distances. After travelling for half a kilometre in this pipe, the pellets are deposited into a 5,000m3 intermediate storage silo. Because of the material’s potentially explosive nature, Portasilofitted more than 120m2 of explosion relief vents to the existing silo roof.

The silo is fitted with an advanced hydraulically driven rotating screw extractor, which sweeps the 14-metre base to collect material from the full silo cross-section. From the silo pit a chain conveyor, ideal for explosive materials, feeds the pellets into another pipe conveyor, which transports the material to the boiler house.

Here, two Portasilo900mm diameter screw conveyors feed the pellets into two five-metre diameter day-silos. Screw conveyors are used to achieve a controlled transfer of accurate volumes of material into the silos. The day-silos were constructed at the purpose-built Portasilofacility, which is capable of fabricating very large silos up to 15m in diameter in a single piece, significantly reducing site costs and build time.

The installation of these silos demanded a precision operation, since they had to be lowered into a steel framework by crane with only inches of clearance on all sides. This operation was carefully planned by Portasiloto minimise disruption to the plant. From the day-silos, biomass is transferred into six disc mills that feed the fuel into new state-of-the-art burners that are required to ignite the fuel.  To enable the feed rate from the day-silos to be independently variable, PortasiloOsciflo bin dischargers were used, giving a variable discharge rate of between 0.4 and four tonnes per hour into the mills. These modifications ensure the silo meets the requirements of ATEX  legislation.

The installation and commissioning of the Portasilo equipment was completed on schedule and with no disruption to the normal operation of the plant. Andrew Mills, Project Manager at Ferrybridge Power Station said: “The advanced system devised by Portasilofulfils all of our requirements and is successfully delivering increased volumes of biomass into our new burners.

 “The installation and commissioning of the Portasilo equipment was completed with no disruption to the normal operation of the plant.” The complete solution from Portasiloincluded all platforms and supporting steelwork, as well as full-length gantries along the pipe conveyors to provide full maintenance access.

5 August 2008 Fauji Cement opens garbage-fed fuel processing plant

Fauji Cement Company (FCC) on Monday inaugurated its first garbage-fed Refused Derived Fuel (RDF) processing plant at its factory at Jhang Bahtar, Fateh Jang tehsil. The Rs 300m plant consists of a sorter installed at the dumping site and a treatment plant installed at the factory, which converts sorted garbage into burnable fuel.

After initial sorting by sorter installed at Bhatta Chowk, mud and other thin particles of garbage are separated and sold out to local vendors for its conversion into fertilizer. The remaining garbage is transferred to the company for further treatment, Project Director Khawar Saleem told reporters here. The sorter separates mud and other items from the garbage at a speed of 30t/h.

During the visit to factory, it was found that the plant installed on the factory premises comprises three components. First part converts garbage into tiny pieces of 50 to 70cm and the second separates iron pieces from garbage and throw out metal. In the final process, clean garbage is converted into tiny pieces for use as alternative fuel along with coal, said Saleem. He said the plant could produce 12t of RDF per hour, and would replace around 170t of coal per day as fuel. He said the company had planned collection of 300 to 400t ofgarbage from the dumping sites of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

FCC Managing Director Iftikhar Malik said that the company was burning 50t fuel daily to manufacture 3885t cement. He said initially, 170t RDF would be mixed with 330t coal in the cement plant on experimental basis. “If found satisfactory, we’ll shift to RDF completely,” he said. He said the company was presently spending US$200 to buy each ton of coal. By shifting to the RDF, the company will save US$10,000/d, he said.

The FCC MD admitted that no Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) study of the project was done. He, however, said the company would get the EIA study done if asked by the CDA or any other department. He said open dumping of garbage had a negative bearing on environment. He said installation of the RDF plant would address the problem permanently.

29 July 2008 Alternative fuel source for cement production in Rwanda

An alternative power generating source has been secured to increase cement production in Rwanda. The plan confirmed on Monday by Juvenal Rutaganda, the production manager of Cimerwa, a cement factory, will use peat, a coal-like fossil fuel as another energy source. Rutaganda said research has been underway since last year to secure alternative energy to reduce dependence on diesel fuel to meet the factory's huge energy demand.

"The peat quantity needed is yet to be specified but what I can tell you is that our annual cement production will increase from 100,000 to 600,000t," he projected. The quantity of peat fossils locally known as 'Nyiramugengeri' mostly found in bogy areas is reported by geological specialists to be around 200Mt countrywide.

Mike Biryabarema, the head of the National Geology and Mines Authority which runs the mines sites, ascertained that the country has enough peat tons for other extra use. The Rwanda Investment Group (RIG) which owns the factory said lthat nearly 80% of peat energy will replace that of diesel and cut its frequent shortage or other faults.

In 2002, the government permitted the international firm to conduct a pilot study in Gishoma lowland, Southern Province to find out peat availability in the country.

17 July 2008 Australian cement trucks turn to flower power

The Australian cement industry, one of the key industries threatened by the introduction of a carbon emissions trading scheme, is trying to paint itself green. Australian concrete companies are among the nation's most energy-intensive but are tackling their poor reputation head on with a symbolic move from diesel to natural gas-powered cement mixers. A fleet of the 'green' mixers, painted in colourful flower-power designs, took to the streets to promote Boral's efforts to reduce its carbon footprint.

The roll-out came amid signs that the Federal Government is poised to offer concessions to the cement industry as part of the introduction of its emissions trading scheme. The industry is seen as having a strong case for compensation because it is both emissions-intensive and exposed to imports from overseas competitors not yet subject to a carbon price. Without compensation, which is likely to come in the form of free pollution permits, the industry argues it would simply be forced to move overseas.

Australia produces about 10Mt of cement a year and its energy-intensive production process means that for every ton of cement produced, about 0.8 of a ton of CO2 is emitted. But Australia also imports about 2Mt/y of cement from Japan, China and Indonesia, and the industry argues that without compensation a carbon price levied on Australian producers would mean they are unable to compete. And, the industry argues, inferior production processes in competing countries means they emit even more carbon than Australian production processes do, so the overall impact on global warming would be negative if they were forced offshore. Similar arguments are being waged by other so-called trade-exposed, energy-intensive industries - such as aluminium and LNG - with the Government's response to be outlined in a green paper today.

Boral has put five of the flamboyant-looking mixers on the road, trialling the use of compressed natural gas which emits 7% less greenhouse gasses than the equivalent diesel-powered trucks. Murals adorning the barrels of the cement agitators feature birds, flowers and other green themes.

"Programmes like this are vital if we are to improve our understanding of the technology and enable us to develop a sustainable alternative to diesel fuel," Boral chief executive Rod Pearse said. "The success of the programme is not solely about realising fuel savings but our commitment to the environment and sustainability," he said.

Driver Andrew Jackman said the hippie trucks were eye-catching. "It's turning quite a few heads," he said. "A lot of people have been asking questions about it, it's good, you actually feel good about driving it." And there is an added environmental bonus. While the trucks may be loud in look, the natural gas engines run more quietly than their diesel counterparts. "Maybe in the future we'll all be driving trucks like this," the 36-year-old truckie said.

Boral has five of the trucks on the road, all in Sydney at the moment, but hopes to expand the fleet over time.

14 July 2008 Lafarge may scrap tyre plan - decision hinges on appeal battle

In a bombshell announcement, Lafarge Canada revealed it will scrap its plan to burn tyres at the Bath cement plant before allowing the matter to go to an independent hearing. Lafarge Canada released a statement indicating it will continue its attempts to stop the hearing through the Ontario Court of Appeal. But if it loses that legal battle, it will effectively kill the project and withdraw its permit application from the Ministry of the Environment to burn the waste. "There should be no scenarios under which an appeal hearing will proceed and there will be no need for the parties to continue expending time and resources on the appeal hearing," Lafarge stated.

David Crocker, Lafarge's lawyer, said that though the company stands by the safety of the tyre-burning technology, it does not want a hearing into the tyre-burning plan to go ahead. "Although we believe that alternative fuels are bona fide and a reasonable approach, are environmentally responsible and socially responsible and will reduce the facility's reliance on fossil fuels ... the hearing will be lengthy and expensive," he said in an interview. The independent hearing is scheduled to start in September 2008. But Crocker said he's hopeful the proceedings will be postponed pending the outcome of Lafarge's appeal. He anticipates the appeal process to take upwards of eight or nine months.

"If we're not successful before the Court of Appeal, there won't be any hearing," he said.

Lafarge has been working for roughly five years to get provincial permission to burn tyres, bone meal and other waste at its Bath cement kiln. For much of that time, many citizens and environmental groups have opposed the plan because they want more government and scientific scrutiny of the project. It's been a long process for both Lafarge and for those who have fought to get more public input into the controversial plan. Earlier in July, Lafarge announced it would go to the Ontario Court of Appeal in an effort to reverse an18 June decision by Ontario's Divisional Court. That ruling permitted a citizen-led appeal of Lafarge's tyre-burning proposal to go ahead. Crocker sent a letter to all the parties involved in the hearing, as well as to the Environmental Review Tribunal, an independent body that would oversee the proceedings, outlining its decision to stop the project if it loses in court. Lawyers involved in the hearing are scheduled for a teleconference to discuss matters surrounding the hearing.

Mark Mattson, a lawyer with the environmental group Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, one of the parties that had asked for the hearing, hadn't received the letter from Lafarge when theWhig- Standardcontacted him. He was surprised to learn of Lafarge's recent news.

"We've been so focused on our work for the last few months," he said. "We're getting ready for the hearing in September so it's been a lot of work ... it will change how we get up on Monday to proceed with the case, I suppose." Mattson said that while it will be disappointing if there is no hearing, it's good news that the project may be taken off the table. "From a community point of view, I suppose it's a good thing I suppose that if they can't prove that it's safe, they're going to cancel the project," he said. "But it would have been good to get more evidence on these issues to figure out how to put in place something better than what they have in place currently."

4 July 2008 Waste: MEPs tackle Europe’s growing waste mountain

MEPs have endorsed new EU rules designed to tackle the 1.8bnt of waste generated each year in Europe. The vote on 17 June 2008 followed a series of negotiations between the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers (representing the EU’s 27 Member State governments), given that both Parliament and the Council have to agree the new rules before they can come into effect. Among the main aspects of the new rules, as voted for include: A 50% target to re-use or recycle waste materials such as paper, metal or glass from households by 2020; A 70% target to re-use or recycle non-hazardous construction and demolition waste, also by 2020; An obligation on EU Member States to set up waste management plans and waste prevention programmes; A setting-up in law of a five-category hierarchy for dealing with waste. In order of preference: prevention; re-use; recycling; recovery; safe and environmentally-sound disposal.

A majority of MEPs also backed a definition of incineration as a ‘recovery’ operation, provided it meets certain energy efficiency standards. This was the second reading in the European Parliament where each amendment adopted needed at least 392 votes (50% + 1). The text now passes to the Council of Ministers, which is expected to confirm the vote at one of its next meetings.

4 July 2008 Report into the use of alternative fuels in Chinese cement industry published

A new report entitled 'Use of alternative fuels in cement manufacture: Analysis of fuel characteristics and feasibility for use in the Chinese cement sector' has been published by researches at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The authors of the report, which can be downloaded at http://china.lbl.gov/files/LBNL%20525E.%20Use%20of%20Alternative%20Fuels%20in%20Cement%20Manufacture.%20Jun2008.pdf, are Ashley Murray and Lynn Price.

4 July 2008 Lafarge pushes forward with plan to stop hearing

Lafarge isn't backing down from its efforts to stop a hearing into a plan to burn scrap tires at its Bath cement plant. Lafarge, which has operations in nearly 50 countries, announced it will go to the Ontario Court of Appeal in an effort to reverse a 18 June 2008 decision by Ontario's Divisional Court. That ruling allowed a citizen-led appeal of Lafarge's proposal to burn tires, plastics, bone meal and other waste in its cement kiln to go ahead. The Environmental Review Tribunal, to be held over two-and-a-half months, is set to begin 22 September 2008.

Lafarge spokesman Rob Cumming said the company has already gone to great expense to compile expert reports on the alternative fuel technology for the Ministry of the Environment and doesn't see that it should have to duplicate that work at a hearing. "We're pursuing the appeal ... because we see this decision as very problematic for business investment," he said. Cumming said the technology Lafarge plans to use to burn the waste is safe. Lafarge fuels kilns by burning scrap tires at plants around the world. "We are absolutely convinced based on our experience everywhere else that we can have great results," he said.

Cumming describes the hearing process as expensive, divisive and adversarial. He said Lafarge would much rather go through a mediation process with the tribunal as a cheaper way to address citizens' concerns. "Instead of the public being central, it's lawyers that are central in the appeal process," he said. "We think the public has had a chance to have their concerns raised. They've been addressed. We'd love to sit down with the public ... instead of feeling like a court process, it would be more like sitting down and working out our questions."

Opponents of the plan are skeptical. "Those are words, but the actual actions of the corporation and the Ministry of the Environment [have] been to ... stop the hearing from beginning," said Mark Mattson of Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, one of the environmental groups pushing for the hearing. After negotiating through the summer last year, Mattson said Lafarge decided it would legally try to stop the hearing. The parties are now waiting to learn if Lafarge's decision to go to the Ontario Court of Appeal this month will delay the hearing from starting in September. "I guess that's the next shoe to drop ... we're going to oppose and try to get on with the hearing," said Mattson.

Lafarge has already successfully delayed the start of the hearing once. It had been originally scheduled to start in April, but Lafarge's leave to appeal with Ontario's Divisional Court pushed the hearing back. "Whenever there's one of these appeals underway, it brings into questions whether we'll get the evidence heard [at a hearing] ," said Mattson. He said the matter could go all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.

30 June 2008 Alcoa operations benefits cement industry

Production wastes from Alcoa's Brazilian refineries and smelters are being diverted from landfills and converted into commercially viable products - minimizing their environmental impact and providing new sources of revenue. One of Alcoa's key sustainability goals is to have zero landfilled waste by 2015. To help achieve that goal, the company has developed a global framework for evaluating and then commercializing its industrial waste for re-use in other industries. There are six stages to the process - concept development, feasibility and lab work, testing, pilot plant demonstration, plant re-use demonstration and implementation.

In Brazil, Alcoa's department of applications, development and special product sales has made significant progress in converting a number of major refining and smelting wastes into commercial products. Carbon cryolite, a byproduct of the Soderberg smelting process, is now used as an alternative fuel in cement making. Alcoa's Pocos de Caldas smelter sells about 1000t of the material each month, which will allow it to eliminate all of its stored cryolite - which the smelter has not produced since 2003 - by mid-2009.

Since 2004, Pocos de Caldas has been selling all of its aluminum oxide dust, fine particles produced in the refining process, collected from the calciner department at the refinery as an alumina source for the enrichment of chamot - an inexpensive refractory aggregate. A second application for dust is being developed for the Alcoa smelter in Sao Lus, Brazil, which is located too far from most refractory producers. Sao Lus is currently selling the coal dust generated from its boilers as another alternative fuel source for the cement industry. Almost 12,000t of the dust is being diverted from the landfill each year.

The Brazilian locations are also investigating several potential commercial applications for bauxite residue, the largest volume waste of the refining process. They are working closely in this effort with Alcoa's Australian researchers, who are also developing processes to convert the residue into a raw material for a variety of applications. Primary initiatives include converting the residue for use in the ceramic tile, agriculture, and cement industries.

29 June 2008 Waste plan in Philippines given the ‘green light’

Iloilo City city council has authorised Mayor Jerry P Treñas to sign a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with Holcim Corp, calling for the shipment of 100t of plastic garbage taken from the city’s dumpsite to be used as fuel at Holcim’s cement plant in Lugait, Iligan City, Mindanao. The MOA was approved by the Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB) and the Solid Waste Management for Local Government Units project, assisted by the German-funded GTZ.

City councilor Eldrid Antiquerra, chairman of the committee on environment and the main proponent of the agreement’s committee report, said the project will have a test period of 100 days in shipping out the plastic garbage taken out from the old dumpsite at Barangay, Calajunan, Mandurriao district.
Earlier, Treñas disclosed that a pre-test run conducted in April 2008 was able to send 20t of plastic garbage to Holcim in Iligan and tested as the factory’s fuel in cement manufacturing. The test run was successful, prompting Holcim to eye Iloilo City’s plastic garbage as an important alternative fuel.
The city dumpsite is receiving some 150 to 170t of garbage everyday collected from public markets, shopping malls and residences. Plastic waste makes up of more than 50% of the collected garbage.
The project is expected to minimise the volume of collected garbage at Calajunan as the city is preparing to enforce the rehabilitation and closure plan of the old dumpsite in preparation for full implementation of a sanitary landfill in the area. The plan includes the covering of some three hectares of cleared dumpsite area with soil taken from the Iloilo flood control project site in Jaro and will be developed as rice terraces with trees and flowers. This is expected to later become an eco-tourism park.

The city government has already constructed a perimeter fence around the dumpsite area and acquired an assistance loan of US$2m from the World Bank to buy heavy equipment such as two dumptrucks and one backhoe excavator. It is also planning to buy two bulldozer compactors and a weighbridge.

28 June 2008 200,000t of waste utilised by ACC

Indian cement firm ACC, which uses waste as a substitute for hydrocarbon fuel at five of its 11 cement plants across India, has procured over 200,000t of waste to make cement. Waste such as cow dung, old shampoo, soap, paint sludge as well as municipal waste are fed into furnaces that burn lime into cement. The company has also set up an alternative fuels and raw material division for waste management.

27 June 2008 Semapa animal waste deal

Portuguese cement and construction group Semapa said on 6 June 2008 that it would acquire local animal waste processor Grupo ETSA. According to Semapa, Grupo ETSA offers integral and environmentally sustainable solutions in the treatment of waste. The transaction envisages an enterprise value of Euro59.9m for Grupo ETSA from 30 November 2007, which accounts for an equity value of Euro47.9m. The operation will be subject to a due diligence, and an approval on the part of competition watchdog Autoridade de Concorrencia.

26 June 2008 Performance Plants develops biomass fuel pellets for Lafarge

Lafarge North America Inc, and Performance Plants Inc (PPI), a Kingston-based biotechnology company, have announced a multi-year agreement to grow and develop clean energy biomass grasses and woods for use as fuel at the Lafarge cement plant in Bath. For Lafarge, the joint project is part of the company’s ongoing public commitment to reduce its carbon footprint including the use of renewable and local fuel alternatives.

Robert Cumming, environmental and public affairs manager at the Lafarge cement plant in Bath, said: “The future of the environment, our business and the communities we serve depends on reducing the need for fossil fuels to run our operations. We are proud to team up with PPI which has extensive knowledge in biomass technology.” The companies are also partnering with the Sustainable Bioeconomy Centre at Queen’s University and the University of Guelph, Kemptville Campus, to further evaluate the programme with a special focus on assessing the full potential of non-food plant species as fuel.

For PPI, the four-year agreement is an opportunity to create enhanced non-food crops that are able to be grown on less productive farmland. By combining crop types and PPI’s unique trait technologies, fuel users will be able to create a customised biomass fuel to meet their specific needs.
“Our challenges with biomass and biofuel energy are maximisation of crop yields, crop consistency and cost efficiency,” explains Peter Matthewman, president of PPI. “This is where our technology will be instrumental to develop next generation seeds that are customised for specific industrial users looking for alternative clean energy sources. Biomass-derived biofuels provide a sustainable and economically viable solution for reducing global carbon emissions.”

John Gerretsen, MPP for Kingston and The Islands, praised the initiative; saying “I commend Lafarge and PPI as well and Queen’s University and the Kemptville Campus of Guelph University for this innovative research project into sustainable energy sources,” he said. “This is exactly the kind of initiative that will contribute to achieving our greenhouse gas reduction objectives.”

By enhancing a crop’s own traits, PPI has a suite of patented weatherproof technologies that deliver more abundant, consistent and cost-effective harvests for farmers and feedstock suppliers. PPI is developing non-food biomass feedstocks that will be grown on land and under conditions less suitable for food or feed production. These optimised feedstocks will provide renewable alternatives for industries producing liquid transportation fuels and biochemicals as well as those seeking solid fuels to replace coal.

Non-food grass crops were planted in late May/early June 2008 on 25 acres (0.1km2) of land adjacent to the Lafarge cement plant and owned by the company. These included the perennial species miscanthus and switchgrass in addition to non-food, high biomass varieties of sorghum and maize. Poplar, willow and industrial hemp will be planted on land later in the season.
After harvesting, the bales will be processed into fuel pellets. These pellets will then be used by the Lafarge plant to fire its cement kiln. The company expects to conduct the first trial use in the autumn of 2009.

25 June 2008 Cemex test results support tyre-burning future

Emissions of nitrogen oxide in the air over the town of Rugby have been reduced significantly since Rugby Cement started burning tyres, according to its own figures. Cemex, which owns the Lawford Road plant, said the alternative fuel has been a huge success and is confident the results mean it can carry on burning chipped tyres on a permanent basis.

The figures show that nitrogen oxide levels have been reduced by 26% since it doubled its tyre-burning from three to six tons an hour. In total, emissions have been reduced by 40% and the use of fossil fuels by 24% since the tyre trials began in February 2007. In a statement, Cemex said: “The disposal of the 40m tyres scrapped each year in the UK remains a problem for society and land-filling has been outlawed for some time.

Both tyres and other alternative fuels, such as Climafuel, which is derived from household residual waste and commercial waste, help to reduce emissions.” The results will now go forward for public consultation and then submitted to the Environment Agency (EA), which will decide whether to allow Cemex to burn tyres permanently. The EA said that it is happy so far with Cemex’s progress.

15 June 2008 Municipal solid waste processing plant inaugurated

General (retired) S F Rodrigues, the Administrator of Union Territory, Chandigarh, and the Governor of Punjab have inaugurated a municipal solid waste processing plant in Dadu Majra in Sector 25 West, Chandigarh, India.The plant will provide eco-friendly alternative fuel as well as help rid the city of odours.

Set up at a cost of US$6.9m on 10 acres of land, the plant – which is the first of its kind in northern India – has the capacity to process 50t/d of municipal solid waste, which will be converted into refuse-derived fuel to be used in a thermal power plant in Ropar and a cement plant owned by the Jaypee Group in Himachal Pradesh. Mr Pradeep Mehra, advisor to the Administrator, said that leaves shed by trees in the city, which has been labelled as the greenest city in India, shall also be processed into fuel pellets at the plant.

30 May 2008 Sludge-burning proposal questioned in Maidencreek

Lehigh Cement Co is seeking permission from the state Department of Environmental Protection to burn a sterilised, dried and pelletised form of sewage sludge.

A proposal to burn processed sewage sludge for fuel at the Lehigh Cement Co. plant in Evansville has prompted questions from Maidencreek Township officials and some residents. Lehigh Cement has applied to the state Department of Environmental Protection for a permit to burn Class A biosolids, which are a sterilised, dried and pelletised form of sewage sludge.

Lehigh Cement officials see the burning as safe, economical and good for the company and the environment. "Europeans in general have been doing this for five to 15 years," Evansville plant manager Christoph Streicher said. "It’s seen by the community and industry as a good thing to do." But in a letter to the DEP in March, Maidencreek Township supervisors raised the same concerns two residents expressed at supervisors’ meetings this year. Those focused on emissions and effective monitoring of the burning, along with the Evansville plant’s proximity to Lake Ontelaunee, Reading’s water source.

The Lehigh Cement plant in Union Bridge, Maryland., has been burning Class A biosolids for more than two years, and monitoring of emissions there has not revealed any problems, according to James E. Slater Jr., the environmental compliance officer for Carroll County, Maryland. In Pennsylvania, the DEP has sole responsibility for overseeing smokestack emissions.

Roger Fitterling, an air-pollution control engineer at the DEP office in Reading, said he knows of no other sites in Pennsylvania that are burning biosolids for fuel. The Evansville plant already burns tires as an alternative fuel without problems with heavy metals or other emissions, Streicher said. "They would shut us down if we exceeded the limits," he said. "We are heavily, heavily controlled."

Streicher said that a test burning of 1000t of biosolids was successful, and a second burning of 1500t was planned. If the permit is approved in time, the plant could begin full-scale burning of biosolids later this year, he said. Charles Bortz, environmental coordinator at the Evansville plant, said the process has several benefits, including reducing the need for coal and providing a better outlet for sludge than disposing of it in a landfill or spreading it on farmland. And the ash that is left after burning is mixed into the cement product, which means nothing remains after the limestone and other ingredients have gone through the kiln, Streicher said.

Kurt Deery, an environmental engineer at the Maryland plant, said biosolids have proved to be an inexpensive fuel. "We just pay part of the cost of the freight," Deery said.

In their letter to the DEP, Maidencreek supervisors also brought up what they referred to as "process control issues" at Lehigh Cement that caused a cloud of fine limestone dust to be released in September 2006. The material covered vegetation, buildings and vehicles and provoked outcries from some residents. Streicher said a fuel source such as coal or biosolids would not be released into the atmosphere. "If it were a problem with the burning, the heat source would shut down," he said. The DEP has not ruled on the permit but hopes to do so soon, Fitterling said.

The Berks County commissioners have taken no official stand, pending the outcome of the permit review by the DEP and a consultant hired by the county.

28 May 2008 Cemtrex joins Chicago Climate Exchange

Cemtrex Inc. has become an associate member of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), the world's first and North America's only voluntary, legally binding integrated greenhouse gas emissions reduction, registry and trading system.

CCX is a financial institution whose objectives are to apply financial innovation and incentives to advance social, environmental and economic goals. CCX operates a cap-and-trade system. Members who beat the targets have surplus allowances to sell or bank, and those who have emissions above the targets must purchase CCX Carbon Financial Instrument contracts to achieve compliance. Third-party verification is provided by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), which is the leading financial regulator in the United States.

By joining the CCX, Cemtrex has further strengthened its commitment to developing turnkey projects that allow its customers to create and monetise carbon assets and provide consulting services on projects for generation of
Carbon credits from reduction of greenhouse gases, energy efficiency and alternative fuels. Cemtrex will now be able to assist project owners in trading carbon credits globally.

Cemtrex is also engaged in manufacturing and selling the most advanced instruments for emission monitoring of particulate, opacity, mercury, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, etc. and filtration products for the industry. The Company's products are sold to power plants, refineries, chemical plants, cement plants and other industries, including federal and state governmental agencies.

26 May 2008 Heracles Cement Q1 net falls to Euro1.3m on higher costs

Lafarge's Heracles General Cement Company SA said its first quarter net earnings after taxes fell to Euro1.3m from Euro18.7m booked over the same period in 2007. The company attributed the decrease to higher fuel and power costs as well as the unfavorable comparison to Q1 2007 where a one-off gain was booked from the sale of its participation in Metropolitan Car Enterprises.

Sales for the period edged 2.5% higher from last year to Euro168.4m while EBITDA fell to Euro23.1m from Euro37.7m booked in Q1 2007.

It added that results are not indicative of full year results, due to the seasonality of demand in its product. The company said it will continue to cut costs and improve efficiency. Its plans to implement alternative fuels is expected to reduce both carbon emissions and energy costs in the future.

23 May 2008 New attack on processing plant plan

A BID to build a fuel processing plant in Westbury has come under renewed attack from councillors, residents and nearby businesses. Hills Minerals and Waste Ltd is planning to build a UK£15m Mechanical Biological Treatment plant (MBT) on the Northacre Industrial Park, Westbury, near to residents and Westbury Dairies. The application will be considered by Wiltshire County Council at a future meeting.

MBT uses natural microbes within the waste to accelerate the decomposition process and once dried, the final material can be safely handled, and in this case used as a fuel by Lafarge Cement Works in Westbury.

West Wiltshire MP Dr Andrew Murrison met with the Ham Residents Group to discuss concerns over the location of the proposed plant, which the group feels is too close to people's homes. He said: "While I'm sure the plant involves safe technology, it is desirable that a site is chosen that will minimise the impact on people's lives."

West Wiltshire district councillor David Jenkins added: "To build a MBT on the Northacre Industrial Park that is so close to residents and Westbury Dairies is crazy, and these facts should have had more consideration at the time of the application.

"The proposed plant will take approximately 60,000t of household rubbish from over west Wiltshire and process it into approximately 30,000t of Solid Recovered Fuel (SRF), which will then be transported across Westbury to be burnt as an alternative fuel at Lafarge Cement works. I support the idea of a MBT but the problem I have is the location.

"I think it should be at Lafarge so that the whole process can take place on one site, which will bring many benefits such as helping to relieve the environmental issues and reduce the traffic congestion that will affect the town. My hope is that common sense will prevail." A spokesperson for Westbury Dairies said: "We have made a detailed objection to the planning application and we believe it is highly inappropriate that such a facility is being sited by a major food manufacturing plant."

A spokesperson for Environment Health at West Wiltshire District Council said: "We clearly want to ensure that any new process will not have an unacceptable impact on the local residents, businesses or the environment and consequently have asked for additional information on the possible emissions from the plant and the effectiveness of the proposed control measures."

A spokesman for Hills Minerals and Waste Ltd said: "We have carried out comprehensive impact assessments and believe that the Northacre site is the right one. The project is crucial to the future of sustainable waste management in west Wiltshire."

23 May 2008 China Energy first quarter results

China Energy Recovery, Inc. has announced 2008 first quarter financial results of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Poise Profit International Limited. Prior to the consummation of the Share Exchange Agreement among China Energy Recovery, Poise Profit and the shareholders of Poise Profit on 15 April 2008, Poise Profit was an independently operated company. Poise Profit reported an increase of 106% in consolidated revenue over the same period in 2007, with sales of US$4.2m and a net income of US$712,711.

After closing of the Share Exchange, the Company is emerging as an international leader in the design and construction of heat-energy recovery systems for a variety of sectors including the chemical, petrochemical, refining, paper and steel industries, with primary operations in Shanghai, China. The company announced the receipt of US$8.5m of outside financing earlier this year and intends to use the net proceeds of that financing to accelerate growth of its operations through its wholly-owned subsidiary, HAIE Hi-tech Engineering (Hong Kong) Company, Limited. Hi-tech is ramping its production efforts in order to deliver upon existing orders from a rapidly growing domestic and global customer base.

"We're encouraged by the increase we're seeing in our earnings relative to our order backlog, which is up significantly from last year," stated China Energy Recovery’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Wu Qinghuan. "We are confident that with our recent financing that is helping us raise our capacity output capability, and with our commitment for customer orders that we expect to increase through 2008 and beyond, China Energy Recovery will continue to grow and provide a valuable alternative energy solution for China and the rest of the world."

What is Energy Recovery?

Industrial facilities and power plants release significant amounts of excess heat into the atmosphere in the form of hot exhaust gases or high pressure steam. Energy Recovery is the process of recovering vast amounts of that wasted energy and converting it into usable electricity, dramatically lowering energy costs. Energy Recovery also captures the majority of carbon emissions and other harmful pollutants that would otherwise be released into the environment. It is estimated that Energy Recovery systems installed in US industrial facilities could produce up to 20% of US electricity needs without burning any additional fossil fuel, and could help many industries to meet stringent environmental regulations.

About China Energy Recovery, Inc.

CER is an international leader in energy recovery systems, with a primary focus on the Chinese market. CER's technology captures industrial waste energy to produce low-cost electrical power, enabling industrial manufacturers to reduce their energy costs, shrink their emissions footprint, and generate sellable emissions credits. CER has deployed its systems throughout China and in such international markets as: Egypt, Turkey, Korea, Vietnam and Malaysia. The Company focuses on numerous industries in which a rapid payback on invested capital is achieved by its customers, including: chemical, petro-chemicals, refining (including Ethanol refining), coke processing, and the manufacture of paper, cement and steel. CER continues to invest in R&D and plans to build China's first state-of-the-art energy recovery system research and fabrication facility to allow it to meet the increased demand for its products and services. For more information on CER, please visit: http://www.chinaenergyrecovery.com/s/Home.asp.

21 May 2008 Uganda's Hima to spend US$944,000 on alternative fuel

Suppliers of coffee, rice and timber husks to Hima Cement could earn US$944,000 annually, Bernard Osawa, the company's manager for alternative fuel, has said. Osawa said at the launch of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project in Kampala that the husks would be used as alternative fuel for Hima's generators and would eventually replace the heavy-fuel oil.

The CDM project follows the Kyoto Protocol of 1997, which aims at rolling out best practices that will lead to reduction of industrial gas emissions by 5% between 2008 and 2012. The protocol asked developed and developing economies to adopt Joint Implementation and CDM for sustainable development and reduction of green house gas effects.

Osawa said the project would save more than US$3.1m in foreign exchange through Hima to spend US$944,000 per year on coffee, timber husks educed purchase of imported fuel. "In addition to massive environmental benefits, the CDM project presents benefits to the Ugandan economy through direct job creation," he said, adding that it was expected to create 100 jobs. These practices that include the use of alternative fuel, cement extension, development of biomass plantations and better disposal of industrial by-products like husks are also geared towards achieving sustainable development."

Osawa said Lafarge, Hima's parent company, was dedicated to decreasing carbon dioxide emissions by 20% between 1990 and 2010. By 2007, the reductions stood at 16%. "We aim at registering five projects, which target about 183,000t of carbon dioxide per year," he said. The cement industry contributes 5% to global carbondioxide emissions. The CDM project was vetted, approved and confirmed by the National Environmental Management Authority (NEMA).

21 May 2008 Jaypee's municipal solid waste processing plant inaugurated

General (retd) S F Rodrigues, the Administrator Union Territory, Chandigarh and Governor of Panjab inaugurated the municipal solid waste processing plant in Dadu Majra in Sector 25 West, Chandigarh, India, on 21st May. "This project is for the benefit of the common man and only need is to sustain this project to make it a success," he added. This would not only rid the city of odours and pollution but would provide eco-friendly alternative fuel.

The plant, a public private initiative between Jaiprakash Associates Ltd and the Municipal Corporation, Chandigarh, has been completed in a stipulated time frame as per the agreement which was signed on 30th December 2005 and its foundation stone was laid by Gen Rodrigues on 21st February 2006, said Mr. Rajiv Gaur, President, Jaiprakash Associates Limited.

The plant shall be operational after about three months when complete process gets stabilised, he informed. Set up at a cost of Rs.30 crores on 10 acres of land, the plant which is one of its kind in northern India, has the installed capacity to process 50t/d per day of municipal solid waste, which will be converted into refuse-derived fuel to be used in a thermal power plant in Ropar and a cement plant of Jaypee Group in Himachal Pradesh.

Mr. Pradeep Mehra, Advisor to the Administrator, said that the leaves sheded by trees in the city, which is the greenest city in the country today, shall also be processed in the plant for converting to fuel pellets. Dr. Roshan Sunkaria, Commissioner, Municipal Commissioner, informed that the city has simultaneously launched another complimentary project at the site to cap 42 acres of landfill site, and make it usable for putting up playground or sports facilities. The plant is eco-friendly conforming to the norms laid down by Pollution Control Committee of Chandigarh Administration, and has been fenced, with green cover of trees planted around it to create the green buffer zone.

The plant is fully-covered to minimise exposure to atmosphere, and arrangements to spray culture on the garbage to eliminate insects, flies and odour have also been made. All critical equipment have been imported from Dopastadt Germany and the plant has been commissioned successfully in the supervision of German engineers, which has a fully-equipped laboratory, a workshop, and a fully-automatic control room, effluent treatment plant and fire safety equipment.

The project will give much needed relief to the residents of Chandigarh, and the localities near Dadu Majra waste dump site in particular, which suffered from methane emission due to anaerobic decomposition of MSW in uncontrolled open landfill site, which had so far been the only practice of disposal of garbage. The project shall also help in conservation of fossil fuels, enhance nations's energy security, prevent ground water contamination due to leakage of leachate, stop open dumping, enhance the city's aesthetics and overall hygiene of the area in and around the landfill sties, said Mr. Gaur.

The function was attended by Home Secretary Mr Sanjay Kumar, Deputy Commissioner, Mr. R.K. Rao, former Mayor of Chandigarh Mrs. Harjinder Kaur, municipal councillors, and various officers of the city. Jaypee Group a Rs.4,500 crores industrial conglomerate having rich presence in infrastructure, hydro-power, cement, education and hospitality sectors, embarking on environmental friendly projects to fulfill its social objectives, has taken up this project on BOOT basis - transforming challenges into opportunities - true to its reputation.

30 April 2008 Cement plant eyes plastic garbage as an alternative fuel

A cement manufacturing firm based in Iligan City is eyeing plastic wastes dumped at the Calajunan dumpsite in Mandurriao district as an important alternative fuel for the processing of cement. This was announced by city department of public services chief engineer Raul Gallo, after representatives of Holcim Philippines paid a visit to discuss possible cooperation and partnership on the elimination of plastic garbage at the city dumpsite.

The pre-test run was conducted after rebagging some 20t of garbage from the dumpsite starting 22 March 2008 and lasted until the end of that month. If the plastic discards are found suitable as an alternative fuel, the city government, Holcim and GTZ will draw up a memorandum of understanding for a 100 day partnership for the shipment of plastic wastes taken from Calajunan to the Iligan cement plant. The fuel test was slated for 4 April 2008 at the Holcim plant and samples must pass quality standards. Gallo said the city dumpsite is receiving some 150-170t of garbage every day collected from public markets, shopping malls and residences. Plastic waste makes up of more than 50% of the collected garbage.

Gallo also commented that the pilot project is expected to decrease the volume of collected garbage at Calajunan as the city is preparing to enforce the rehabilitation and closure plan of the old dumpsite in preparation for full implementation of a sanitary landfill in the area. Gallo added that the dumpsite will be covered with soil taken from the Iloilo flood control project site in Jaro and will be developed into an eco-tourism site, including the planting of rice terraces, trees and flowers. The Holcim team who visited Calajunan was headed by Ernesto C Paredes and Rosario Chan, both of the alternative fuels and raw materials group.

29 April 2008 Cemex Puerto Rico uses scrap tyres

Cemex SAB has started burning used tyres as a fuel in Puerto Rico, a move that is intended to relieve a garbage crisis, but has raised concerns about environmental and health risks. Cemex SAB’s plant in the southern city of Ponce is the first to burn scrap tyres for fuel in the US Caribbean territory.

Cemex Puerto Rico President Carlos Jacks said the move will eliminate a noxious waste product from the island’s garbage dumps. Puerto Rico, an island of nearly 4m people, generates about 5m used tyres annually and faces a severe shortage of space for its garbage. Currently, only about 10% of the island’s solid waste is recycled.

Environmentalists and a group of 81 Ponce residents have expressed concern that burning the tyres will cause pollution and respiratory problems. But Jacks says the plant will employ new pollution filters to contain emissions, and that it is complying with US Environmental Protection Agency guidelines.

Cemex Puerto Rico will replace about 20% of the imported coal it had used to power the plant by incinerating 1.52m tyres per year in its cement kiln, the company said.

28 April 2008 Cemex UK granted permit to use climafuel permanently at Barrington cement works

Cemex UK, has been granted permission by the cement industry regulator, the Environment Agency (EA), to use a waste-derived fuel, Climafuel, to part-replace the fossil fuels used to heat the kiln at Barrington cement plant in Cambridgeshire. The permission was granted following completion of an extensive trial where Climafuel was used to replace 20% of fossil fuels, such as coal and petcoke, showing significant environmental benefits, including a marked reduction in emissions of oxides of nitrogen (13%), when Climafuel was in use.
Climafuel is an alternative fuel which is derived from household residual waste and commercial waste. It looks like shredded paper and consists of paper, cardboard, wood, carpet, textiles and plastics that have been through a treatment process. It is a solid, non-hazardous fuel from which recoverable materials have been removed for recycling.

Since the introduction of Climafuel, 10,000t of waste that would otherwise be landfilled (equivalent to 8% of Cambridgeshire’s annual landfill volume), have been used to make cement in Barrington. Based on the biomass content in the fuel, the use of Climafuel has also saved nearly 13,000t of CO, the same emissions as 4700 cars produce in a year.

The Barrington plant already has permission for another alternative fuel, Secondary Liquid Fuel (SLF), which replaces up to 40% of the fossil fuels required for the cement-making process. This means that when used together, SLF and Climafuel can substitute up to 60% of the fuel used to heat the kiln. This is significantly reducing the carbon footprint of the plant. Following the success of the trial to use Climafuel at a 20% replacement rate, CEMEX is now considering applying for permission to trial an increased rate.

22 April 2008 Joppa upgrade improves eco-footprint

Lafarge North America recently announced commencement of an upgrade at its Joppa, Illinois cement plant, bringing annual production to a projected 2Mt following completion of the US$415m modernisation in 2010. An air permit for the project was issued by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency in mid-2007. The upgrade will enhance the plant’s environmental performance in terms of alternative fuels usage and emissions control, Lafarge officials note, as it contributes to the company’s overall cost-reduction initiative. A new kiln will use innovative processes, they add, allowing decreased imports to meet demand via high-efficiency, low-cost operations that also promote environmental sustainability.

20 April 2008 Ash Grove and FLS partner up

Cement and minerals technology supplier FLSmidth has received a plant upgrade contract from the US cement manufacturer Ash Grove Cement Company. The US$75m contract covers the modernisation and expansion of Ash Grove Cement’s existing plant in Foreman, Arkansas, and includes the replacement of three existing wet-process kilns with advanced pyro-processing technology, as well as the installation of an FRM raw mill, an ATOX coal mill and an OK finish grinding mill.
FLSmidth will also deliver various raw material stacking and reclaiming equipment, as well as training, project management and commissioning services. The upgrading will reduce the plant’s fuel consumption by 50%, while at the same time increasing production capacity by 70%.

16 April 2008 Sumitomo eyes large increase in wood fuels

Sumitomo Osaka Cement Co aims to increase use of wood biomass fuels by 10 times to 500,000t/y by 2010. The firm plans to increase the amount of scrap lumber and tree thinnings it procures by working closely with local municipalities where its plants are located. It is looking at signing an agreement with Tochigi Prefecture in 2008 that would allow it to use trees thinned within the prefecture as a fuel at its Tochigi plant.

Most thinned trees are simply discarded because they have limited use and are expensive to transport. Effectively exploiting this resource would help both the company, which is looking to reduce fuel costs, and the local municipalities, which want to use thinning to help maintain forests. Plans also call for increased purchases of wood chips and scrap lumber from construction materials plants and building sites. Non-coal-based fuels such as wood biomass and waste plastic accounted for 20% of the heat the firm used to make each ton of cement in 2006. It aims to boost this ratio to 40% in 2008 to help offset a sharp rise in the price of coal.

14 April 2008 Cimpor makes uses of hazardous waste

Portuguese cement producer Cimpor Cimentos de Portugal has started using hazardous waste recovery in its plant in Souselas, central Portugal, upon the fulfilment of the required conditions for the licensing of this process, Cimpor has announced. The hazardous wastes result from the treatment of hydrocarbon waste proceeding from several industrial sectors. These wastes are previously prepared by licensed waste management companies, under the current environmental legislation, in specialised hazardous waste recycling centres. Hydrocarbon wastes and similar substances, once prepared to be used as alternative fuels in the cement production process, become very close to the ones normally burnt in its clinker kilns. All emissions are strictly monitored, the company noted.

11 April 2008 Tyres for cement, Mexican-style

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in talks with municipal and state authorities from Juarez, in northern Chihuahua state, to implement a US$90,000 plan to recycle tyres abandoned at the local waste dump. Each of the three entities would invest U$30,000 to carry out the recycling plan, aimed at preventing smuggling and reducing pollution levels. The initiative would also complement a project being carried out by Mexican cement maker Cementos Chihuahua since 2004, in which the company uses abandoned tyres as a fuel alternative in its productive process. The manufacturer has processed 2m tyres so far and plans to use 1.8m tyres in 2008, more than double the volume of 2007.

10 April 2008 EcoSiam changes names to Geocycle

Siam City Cement (SCCC) has renamed its EcoSiam business unit Geocycle, in line with the policy of its major shareholder, Holcim, to focus more on waste management under a global brand that abides by international standards. Geocycle’s general manager, Ghassan Broummana, said: “This change is a major step to assure all of our practices will continue to meet international standards. Moreover, being part of the Geocycle global network, we have a unique line of access to the expertise and experience within our network facilities in more than 35 countries.”
The name change is expected to assure its clients that their waste materials will be co-processed in full compliance with all local regulations and environmental standards. “We aim to set the benchmarks of best practice in waste management in Thailand,” Broummana said.

SCCC established EcoSiam, a dedicated business unit responsible for alternative fuels and raw materials, in 2005 at a time when Thailand’s industrial waste output was increasing. It is estimated that Thailand generates more than 10Mt of industrial waste each year.

Under Holcim’s policy, SCCC is providing sound waste-management solutions through co-processing in its cement kilns. Those industrial wastes will be disposed in the kilns without residual ash, under extremely high temperatures of more than 1800°C. While the emissions are controlled, the wastes are turned into alternative fuels and raw materials for cement manufacture. The wastes include plastic, cloth, paint sludge, resins, melamine, contaminated soil and mud, and used tyres.

According to Vanchai Tosomboon, SCCC executive vice president for manufacturing, the co-processing of waste materials is a vital part of the firm’s sustainable-development initiatives: “Using waste materials in cement production as a replacement for coal will help us achieve reductions in CO2,” he said.

3 April 2008 Kenyan cement firm aims to increase its use of alternative fuels

Kenya’s Bamburi Cement Group plans to cut its annual carbon dioxide emissions from plants in Kenya and Uganda by 132,000t by reducing the use of fossil fuels in cement-making. Bamburi did not give an exact figure for its annual emissions but managing director Michel Puchercos put it at about 1.5Mt, based on the production of 1.5Mt of cement. The company, which is 60%-owned by Lafarge, plans to reduce its use of fossils fuels such as coal, and substitute it with wood from its own plantations as well as coffee, rice and cashewnut husks. The fuels are used to fire kilns that roast limestone, a key ingredient in cement.

Bernard Osawa, business manager in charge of alternative fuels, said: “In Kenya and Uganda Between now and 2010 we are targeting a redution of 132,000t of CO2. We are looking at three projects. They are in various stages of development.” Osawa said that cumulatively the company had cut its emissions by a total of over 111,000t of CO2 since 2002 at a cost of Euro3.8m and plans to invest another Euro14m euros in the next two to three years. The firm plans to substitute 20% of fossil fuel at its plant in the coastal city of Mombasa, which uses about 300t of coal a day. It also plans to substitute fossil fuel use by 50% in Uganda where it has its Hima Cement subsidiary.

The cement sector is one of the world’s largest producers of greenhouse gases, producing about 5% of global emissions. Cement production creates carbon emissions twice – first from burning coal to heat the limestone raw material, and again as the limestone separates into carbon dioxide and lime.

27 March 2008 Cauldron wins prestigious award for alternative fuels use

Cauldon cement works has won Lafarge UK’s top in-house award for the best use of alternative fuels. The awards are issued by Lafarge UK to works across the country and are backed up by global and regional plaudits. The 130-strong team at Cauldon made the site one of the top global performers thanks to its work on alternative fuels.

Cauldon uses a combination of coal and petcoke with scrap tyre chips and processed sewage pellets. Cauldron is also permitted to use recovered fuel oil and has submitted an application to the UK Environment Agency to use solid recovered fuel.

Jamie Randall, who heads up Lafarge Cement’s resource recovery businesses, says: “The use of these fuels offers many benefits. It’s a way of making positive use of suitable waste materials, it reduces the need to extract and transport virgin fossil fuels and enables the plant to maintain its environmental performance.” Cauldon produces up to 1Mt of cement a year. It supplies customers across the midlands and northern home counties.

27 March 2008 Pure Earth’s US$6.3m financing deal

Pure Earth, Inc, a waste recycling company, has announced that it has completed a US$6.3m financing package which will provide the capital to expand its existing operations and acquire new facilities. The financing deal will allow Pure Earth to start up a new waste processing company, Pure Earth Energy Resources Inc, that will recycle waste into manufactured fuel. The resultant alternative fuel will be sold to cement producers and others as an alternate fuel resource (AFR). AFR replaces the use of fossil fuel, lowers energy costs and contributes to the reduction of global warming.

The financing was done in the form of a preferred stock offering and included interest of 10% in cash and 4% payment in kind, with repayment due in March 2013. The offering from a Chicago investment fund has no convertible provisions and includes a warrant for 767,375 shares of common stock at various rates after 3 years with customary positive and negative covenants.

Commenting on the financing, Mark Alsentzer the CEO stated, “We are very pleased to have concluded this funding especially during a time of great uncertainty in the financial markets. These funds will provide the necessary capital to continue to grow our existing businesses and expand into new business lines.”

Pure Earth is significantly increasing its capacity to recycle refinery wastes at its 32 acre Vineland, New Jersey waste recycling complex. The refineries are large producers of waste materials that cannot be set to landfill in the US. Many refineries are sending their wastes to landfill sites across the boarder in Canada, a practice that will be disallowed in 2009. The company believes this will create a huge demand for its recycling services since the Vineland facility is one of a small handful of facilities with licenses and permits to treat and recycle these wastes. To further the company’s major expansion efforts in the area of recycling waste materials, Pure Earth also intends to partner with existing corporations as well as starting up the Pure Earth Energy Resources spin-off.

“These two business lines will be primary growth drivers for Pure Earth in the next two to five years. We believe they will both provide attractive profit margins and further, expect them to significantly contribute to Pure Earth’s bottom line.”

Download PRo Calendar 2009 (pdf, 150kb) FICEM-APCAC 7-10 September, Bogotá, Colombia How to Exhibit, 24 September 2009, Epsom, UK International Colloquium on Refractories, 23-24 September 2009, Aachen, Germany 3rd Global Capital Conference 1-2 October 2009, London International VDZ Congress 2009 30 September - 2 October 2009 Global Cement Conference Iran 11-13 October 2009, Tehran, Iran 11th UNITECR 2009 13-16 October, Salvador, Brazil 4th Global Insulation Conference 2009, 2-3 November 2009, Prague 7th Arab International Conference and Exhibition on Environment Protection in Cement Industry 10-12 November, Beirut 5th Global Slag Conference, 23-24 November 2009, Brussels, Belgium (note date and venue change) Global Micropayments Conference, 1 December, London 52nd IEEE-IAS/PCA Cement Industry Technical Conference, 28 March - 1 April 2010, Colorado Springs 22nd AFCM Technical Symposium, 27-29 April 2010, Danang, Vietnam Global Ash Conference 11-12 May 2010, Düsseldorf 4th Global Alternative Fuels Conference for Cement and Lime, June 2010, Washington DC, US Hillhead quarrying show, 22–24 June 2010, Buxton, UK 10th Global Gypsum Conference and Exhibition, 25-26 October 2010, Paris, France

Gypsum Association (US)

Eurogypsum (Europe)

Saint Gobain

Categories

Conference reviews

2nd Global Fuels Conference and Exhibition 2008 review (GF Magazine, May 2008, downloads as eGF_May08_GF08Review.pdf, 6.00MB)

Alternative fuels for the cement industry

Possibilities for the use of alternative fuels in the cement industry (GF Magazine, May 2008, downloads as eGF_May08_FLSmidth.pdf, MB)

The 'co-processing' of waste in the cement industry (GF Magazine, June 2007, downloads as eGF_Jun07_Cembureau.pdf, 3.28MB)

Alternative fuels - history and outlook (GF Magazine, February 2008, downloads as eGF_Feb08_Lechtenberg.pdf, 294KB)

Successful implementation of secondary fuels in clinker manufacturing (GF Magazine, February 2007, downloads as eGF_FuelsforClinker.pdf, 4.28MB)

Country case studies

Tunisia: Waste management and the cement industry (GF Magazine, May 2008, downloads as eGF_May08_RDF-Tunisia.pdf, MB)

Iran's industry: Fuel consumption now and in the future (GF Magazine, June 2007, downloads as eGF_Jun07_Iran.pdf, 717KB)

Use of waste derived fuels and materials in the Brazilian cement industry (GF Magazine, June 2007, downloads as eGF_Jun07_Brazil.pdf, 543KB)

Use of alternative fuels in the Canadian and US cement industry: Opportunities and barriers (GF Magazine, February 2007, eGF_Feb07_CanadaFuels.pdf, 1.51MB)

Rebuilding Beirut with alternative fuels (GF Magazine, February 2007, downloads as eGF_Feb07_Beirut.pdf, 9.03MB)

Global fuel and energy issues

Optimisation of secondary fuels from waste management processes (GF Magazine, Jun 2007, downloads as eGF_Jun07_RegenFuels.pdf, 1.43MB)

Global industrial energy review (GF Magazine, February 2007, downloads as eGF_Feb07_FuelsReview.pdf, )

Power and emissions (GF Magazine, December 2007, downloads as eGF_Dec07_CEAG.pdf, 5.46MB)

Handling/conveying alternative fuels

Waste - a growing resource (GF Magazine, May 2008, downloads as eGF_May08_Orchid.pdf, MB)

Preparation and handling of RDF (GF Magazine, December 2007, downloads as eGF_Dec07_RDFHandling.pdf, 702KB)

System technology for the use of alternative fuels for kiln firing in the cement industry (GF Magazine, December 2007, downloads as eGF_Dec07_Beumer.pdf, 1.30MB)

Misc. fuels

'Future proofing' with FuelQuest (GF Magazine, May 2008, downloads as eGF_May08_FuelQuest.pdf, MB)

Global prospects for microalgae production for biofuels and for the preservation of nature (GF Magazine, February 2008, downloads as eGF_Feb08_Algae.pdf, 1.07MB)

Chemical measurement and analysis systems

The control of environmentally sensitive elements in alternative fuels by X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (GF Magazine, December 2007, downloads as eGF_Dec07_PANalytical.pdf, 839KB)

Plant optimisation strategies

Process control reprioritisation to accommodate non-traditional fuel, firing methods and emission requirements (GF Magazine, June 2007, downloads as eGF_Jun07_Cadence.pdf, 1.64MB)

From plant information management systems to process economic optimisation: Real-time cement kiln fuel mix optimisation (GF Magazine, February 2008, downloads as eGF_Feb08_ABB.pdf, 566KB )