Displaying items by tag: Trial
Al Jouf Cement launches trial operations of new production line
18 December 2013Saudi Arabia: Al Jouf Cement has said in a bourse statement it has launched trial operations of a second production line. The new production line will have a clinker production capacity of 5000t/day. The trial period will take three months.
Al Jouf announced in October 2013 that it had signed an agreement with Al Rajhi Bank for a US$107m loan to partially finance the construction of the new production line. The loan is to be repaid by June 2019.
France: On 20 June 2013 France-based cement producer Vicat announced that it had begun 10 days of trials at its Créchy cement plant in Allier with the aim of producing a new, low-CO2 type of cement known as ALPENAT®.
The trials, which aim to produce 10,000t of ALPENAT, are a first step towards full industrial production following years of research by Vicat into lower-CO2 cements. It is claimed that ALPENAT has embodied CO2 levels that are 30% lower than that of conventional cement.
While Vicat is currently keeping chemical and technical specifics out of the public domain, it reports that ALPENAT achieves its lower CO2 emissions via two methods. It reports that it has: 1. Reduced the temperature required in the kiln and; 2. Reduced the levels of limestone included in the cement raw mix, which reduces the CO2 released in the decarbonation step.
In addition to its good environmental credentials, ALPENAT is also presented by Vicat as a high-performance cement. It allows faster setting, an increase in resistance at seven and 28 days compared to OPC in the same strength class (42.5 or 52.5) and improved durability. It has already proven its strength over two years at the Vicat Montalieu cement plant, where a ramp for 100t dumper trucks has been constructed out of concrete made from ALPENAT.
Vicat says that the research that led to ALPENAT was made possible by its focus on research and development, mainly at its Isle d'Abeau laboratories.
The Vicat announcement about ALPENAT comes hot on the heels of trials conducted by Lafarge, which recently presented details of its Aether® cement clinker to the cement industry. This belite-based cement was featured in the May 2013 issue of Global Cement Magazine.
QNCC begins trial at Umm-Bab
08 July 2011Qatar: Trial operations have commenced by the Qatar National Cement Company (QNCC) on its USD6m calcium carbonate plant at Umm-Bab in southern Qatar. QNCC has signed an agreement with the Stream Industrial Engineering Company to build the plant on a turn-key basis. The plant will be specialised in the production of calcium carbonate for use in water treatment operations and is expected to have a production capacity of 250t/day.
QNCC general manager Mohamed Ali al-Sulaiti commented, "There is an agreement with Kahramaa to buy the calcium carbonate for 25 years. For the plant, Ras Girtas power station at Ras Laffan will be one of the supporting stations." He added "QNCC is carefully growing and expanding to play its national role in supporting the infrastructure development in the state, especially after Qatar won the bid for hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup." Al-Sulaiti further stated that the company has set up two new mills with a planned capacity of 130t/h.