Articles on the cement industry from Global Cement

Here, Denes Novak and Manfred Tisch of Wopfinger Baustoffindustrie GmbH present the development and properties of a new 'clinker substitute,' which combines high performance with lowered costs and CO₂ emissions.

North African nations have seen varying amounts of political disruption in recent years, with revolutions in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia and disruption in Morocco and Algeria. Construction, and hence cement production, has been a low priority as a result. In some countries the cement industry is also battling higher fuel costs. However, recent expansions may signal a brighter cement future for Africa's north coast.

The 7th International VDZ Congress 2013, 'Process technology of cement manufacturing,' has successfully taken place in Duesseldorf, Germany, on 25 - 27 September, attracting around 600 delegates of whom around 250 were from outside Germany. The Congress - in English - takes place every four years and is regarded as one of the most prestigious cement technical conferences in the world.

Alternative fuels are now a firmly-established reality in well-developed cement industries around the world and increasing amounts of alternative fuels are also being used in developing economies. Here, MVW Lechtenberg & Partner's Dirk Lechtenberg uncovers a wealth of information regarding the use of alternative fuels in the German cement industry, especially with reference to the relatively unexplored negative aspects of their use. Alternative fuels may mean lower CO₂ emissions, avoidance of landfill and decreased costs but they may also entail higher numbers of truck movements, higher dust emissions and higher specific energy consumption per tonne of cement. Part 2 of Dirk Lechtenberg's research will follow in the November 2013 issue of Global Cement Magazine.

The countries of South America are at different stages of economic development, with cement industries of varying size and ages. Nine countries, namely Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, have integrated cement facilities. These have a combined cement industry that is the same size as that of Brazil, which is not covered in this review.