Energy effective cement processes

Cement is an important material in modern society. Yet cement production is an energy-consuming endeavor which may entail unwanted emissions into the atmosphere; e.g. sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrochloric acid, unburned components, heavy metal remnants, and greenhouse gas emissions. Alternative fuels and reduces emissions: The purpose of the high technology platform Cement Processes of the Future is to establish the scientific background for cement processes with improved energy efficiency where alternative fuels from waste and biomass may be utilized in a flexible manner concurrently with fossil fuels, leading to minimum emission of unwanted sustances. Complex production process: Producing cement without worrying about energy consumption or harmful emissions is relatively simple. However, achieving the optimum production process financially, energy wise and environmentally, requires a detailed knowledge of fundamental chemical and physical processes that interact in a complex manner through the preparation of raw materials, the pre-heating process, during calcination, and throughout the actual formation of clinker. Research and experiments: The platform will comprise detailed experiments with burning raw materials for cement clinker, thermal conversion of different fuel types - including combustion in regular air and in mixtures of oxygen and carbon dioxide, direct and indirect calcination of limestone, as well as applying addiditives in order to reduce harmful emissions. The typical experiment will commence at micro level in the laboratories of the Department og Chemical Engineering. Then it will be upscaled to pilot trial in the department's experiment hall. Subsequently, mathematical models will be used in a further scale-up at the FLSmidt experimental facility at Mariager. The ultimate full-scale tests will be conducted in collaboration with the clients of FLSmidt