Displaying items by tag: CO2
US: A team from the University of Colorado Boulder (UCB) has developed a carbon-neutral alternative cement from biogenic limestone. The limestone comes from farmed cocolitophores, which capture CO2 as they grow.
The UCB scientists collaborated with colleagues from the University of Carolina at Wilmington and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory on the project. Their work has received US$3.2m in US Department of Energy funding.
This news story has been corrected to include the correct name of the University of Colorado Boulder
Nevada Department of Transportation approves Portland limestone cement for road projects
28 June 2022US: The Nevada Department of Transportation has approved the use of Portland limestone cement (PLC) for road construction and repairs. The department expects the move to reduce CO2 emissions by 4000t/yr. It uses 45,000t/yr of cement in its projects. Local press has reported that transport contributed 35% of Nevada’s CO2 emissions in 2022, making it the largest single source.
Morocco: Holcim subsidiary LafargeHolcim Maroc has released information about its 1.6Mt/yr Agadir cement plant in Souss-Massa Region. The producer invested US$299m in the plant’s construction and it has been operational since late 2021. The plant is highly automated in line with Holcim’s Plants of Tomorrow strategy. It will run off wind power from 2023, and also uses alternative fuel (AF). 200 people work at the plant.
In conjunction with its work in setting up the new cement plant, LafargeHolcim Maroc developed drinking water networks in the surrounding area, including the construction of three solar-powered water towers.
UK: Karbonite UK has developed a new supplementary cementitious material consisting of mineral feedstock, geopolymers and waste biomass. The process also involves CO2 sequestration and liquid-infused CO2 absorption within the mineral structure. The material, called Karbonite, is activated at 750 – 850°C, releasing water, which is captured for recycling. Its CO2 emissions are 2.7kg/t, according to Karbonite UK. The developer says that Karbonite ground with 50% clinker yields a cement of equal compressive strength to ordinary Portland cement (OPC).
Karbonite UK is currently preparing a final report on the product for a major cement producer.
Managing director Rajeev Sood said “Karbonite offers a wealth of potential to an industry targeting net zero. We are excited to talk to cement and concrete producers about how they could integrate Karbonite technology into their existing process.”
Austria: RHI Magnesita’s customers can now rely on Environmental Indicators on all of its products’ Technical Data Sheets to check their CO2 emissions. The indicators state the CO2 equivalent emissions per tonne of each product. The supplier calculated the figures in line with ISO standards under on-going external supervision.
Chief sustainability officer Gustavo Franco said “One of RHI Magnesita’s main targets is to significantly reduce emissions over the next few decades, with the long-term goal of achieving net-zero operations in all areas of the company. It is clear that a solid basis for sustainable decisions and developments can only be achieved by creating a valid audited database.”
Austria: RHI Magnesita says it has released CO2 emissions data for all of its 200,000 products. Technical Data Sheets now include a field ‘Environmental Indicators’ in which the CO2 equivalent emission of one metric ton of the product is listed. The calculation method for these indicators is developed with and supervised on an on-going basis by an external organisation under the principles of ISO standards. All greenhouse gases ‘cradle-to-gate’, from raw material extraction to production to packaging to gate are considered in these CO2 footprint calculations.
Chief sustainability officer Gustavo Franco said "This project marks an important milestone towards a green transformation. Thus, one of RHI Magnesita's main targets is to significantly reduce emissions over the next few decades, with the long-term goal of achieving net-zero operations in all areas of the company. It is clear, that a solid basis for sustainable decisions and developments can only be achieved by creating a valid audited database."
Cement sector CO2 emissions double in 20 years
23 June 2022World: The total volume of CO2 emissions released during cement production have more than doubled over the past 20 years, a study has revealed. In 2021 CO2 emissions from the manufacture of cement came to 2.6Bnt, more than 7% of all emissions, according to Robbie Andrew, a greenhouse gas emissions scientist at the CICERO Center for Climate Research in Norway and the Global Carbon Project. In 2001 the CO2 emissions from cement production were just 1.2Bnt.
Driven by China, the global cement sector’s CO2 emissions have now more than tripled in the 30 years since 1992, recently increasing by 2.6% a year. The drivers are not just that more cement is being made, but that the CO2 intensity of production has risen by 9.2% per tonne, according to the International Energy Agency. This is due to a switch from production in mature markets to developing ones, with China again a dominant factor.
DG Khan Cement ships 50,000t of cement to the US
21 June 2022Pakistan: DG Khan Cement has despatched a shipment of 50,000t of cement for Houston, US, from Karachi. The Balochistan Times newspaper has reported that the shipment is the first of 12 consignments of the same size under an order for 600,000t of low-alkali cement. If successful, the order may double to 1.2Mt. The producer is using jumbo bags to transport the product on its 42-day journey overseas.
Marketing director Fareed Afzal said that Pakistani businesses need to diversify their export markets and strengthen foreign currency reserves. He added that DG Khan Cement continues to reduce its products' carbon footprints by using renewable energy, waste heat recovery (WHR) and alternate fuels (AF).
Australia: Adbri is part of a consortium of eight Australian industrial manufacturers, developers and port operators collaborating with AGL Energy on a feasibility study for a green hydrogen plant at the site of the latter’s Torrens Island power plant in South Australia. AFR Online News has reported that any future hydrogen plant established by the partners would rely on solar and wind power, which has large potential in the region.
The South Australian government previously launched its first US$414m green hydrogen project in Whyalla in March 2022.
Fauji Cement’s sustainability initiatives slash 215,000t of CO2 emissions in 2022 financial year
20 June 2022Pakistan: Fauji Cement says that its sustainability initiatives across its three cement plants reduced CO2 emissions by 215,000t in the 2022 financial year. The Pakistan Today newspaper has reported that clinker factor reduction in reduced-CO2 products such as Askari Green cement and Pamir cement eliminated 89,900t-worth of emissions, 42% of total reductions. Waste heat recovery (WHR) plants eliminated 79,400t of emissions (37%), solar power plants eliminated 31,500t (15%), alternative fuel (AF) substitution eliminated 8030t (3.5%) and reforestation eliminated 600t (2.5%).