- Written by Dirk Lechtenberg, MVW Lechtenberg & Partner
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.
- Written by Peter Edwards, 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.
- Written by Christian Pickhan & Wolfram Zschiesche, Vecoplan FuelTrack GmbH
DG Khan's cement plant at Chakwal, Pakistan, is one of the largest cement plants in Asia. With the support of Vecoplan FuelTrack it is successfully using alternative fuels.
Cement demand in Pakistan is strongly correlated with gross domestic product (GDP). For a few years, however, the growth rate of the GDP has stagnated in the south Asian republic. The rising cost of fuels such as oil, diesel and coal on the international markets (now and in the future) represents a serious threat to the economy. It is therefore logical for Pakistani cement manufacturers to substitute their primary fuels with alternative fuels to a very high proportion in the medium term. DG Khan is a pioneer in this field in the Pakistani cement market.
- Written by Peter Edwards, Global Cement Magazine
The People's Republic of China is the world's most populous country and the second-largest economy after the USA.1 It is also a dominant industrial power and has the largest cement industry in the world,2 although its exact size is up for debate. However large, the country's massive cement capacity has helped fuel massive government-led infrastructure and settlement projects. China is also one of the largest global cement exporters.3
The land that constitutes the modern People's Republic of China has a rich history as a leading region of economic, political, social and technological development. Today it is both the world's largest Communist state and the most populous country in the world, re-formed by the Communist Party leader Chairman Mao Zedong after the Second World War.
- Written by David Perilli, Global Cement Magazine
The Caterpillar Asia Pacific Quarry Days, held on 3 – 7 June 2013 in Japan, assembled delegates from across the Asia Pacific area to discuss Caterpillar products, technology and services. Broken into two sessions for low-regulated and high-regulated countries in the Asia-Pacific and Australasia region, the event took its guests from downtown Tokyo to the quarry and aggregate machinery manufacturer's Chichibu Demonstration Centre, the largest training centre for construction machinery in Asia. Global Cement attended at the kind invitation of Caterpillar.
Quarry Days covered a wide range of Caterpillar's products and services so this article will concentrate on those with a direct application for the cement industry. Both sessions of the event comprised a day of classroom sessions in Tokyo, followed by a day 'in the iron' (to use Caterpillar speak) at the Chichibu
Demonstration Centre. Here guests could see and clamber over the latest models of hydraulic excavators, hammers, large wheel-loaders, off-highway trucks and more. Participants were even able to take their prospective purchases for test-drives around the facility.
