Displaying items by tag: circular economy
Adani Group to establish cement plant in Santhal Pargana
22 January 2024India: Adani Group has announced plans to build a new cement plant, possibly at Godda, in Jharkhand’s Santhal Pargana Division. The Times of India newspaper has reported that producer recently established a 1.6GW power plant in Godda.
The group said “In keeping with our group’s expansion plans, we are conducting a feasibility study to set up a cement factory, most probably in Godda. A proposal will be sent to government soon. The proposed plant will further boost the economy of Godda and Santhal Pargana. The proposed plant will utilise fly ash from our existing power plant here as raw material. At present, the fly ash is being sent to the ACC cement plants in Jhikpani and Sindri.”
Neustark announces upcoming rapid expansion in Europe
19 January 2024Switzerland: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) equipment developer and supplier Neustark says it plans to more than double the number of its CO2 storage sites in Austria, France, Germany, Switzerland and the UK to 34 from 14. Neustark’s process turns mineralised captured CO2 and existing mineral waste streams into useful limestone. Building materials producers lease Neustark’s storage sites to produce reduced-CO2 alternatives such as recycled concrete. The sites currently have a total storage capacity of 5000t. Existing customers include Holcim.
Neustark CEO Johannes Tiefenthaler said “Neustark is scaling up rapidly, and we’re well on track to achieve our aim of permanently removing 1Mt of CO₂ by 2030. Our global goal is a series of reliable, region-specific CCS facilities that can be replicated anywhere, offering immediate sustainability benefits to local supply chains.”
Holcim’s ECOCycle construction-demolition material recycling technology named Circularity Lighthouse
17 January 2024Switzerland: McKinsey & Company and the World Economic Forum have recognised Holcim’s ECOCycle recycling technology for construction-demolition material (CDM) as a "Circularity Lighthouse in the Built Environment." ECOCycle technology can process 100% of CDM input into new building materials with 75% lower CO2 emissions than traditional alternatives.
Chief sustainability officer Nollaig Forrest said “Circularity is a game changer to decarbonise buildings at scale. At Holcim we are operating over 100 ECOCycle recycling centres globally to drive circular construction. With our advanced recycling of CDM, we can already reduce the CO2 footprint of cement by up to 40%. This is just the beginning; as we innovate and partner across the value chain to evolve building norms, we aim to accelerate the shift to circular construction in all metropolitan areas where we operate.”
Cembureau sets manifesto for industrial transformation
10 January 2024EU: Cembureau has published its manifesto for industrial transformation for the European Parliament’s 2024-2029 legislative term. The manifesto calls for an ambitious EU agenda focused on the implementation of the European Green Deal along five key lines: 1 - turbo-charging EU and national funding and developing national industrial decarbonisation plans; 2 – Rolling out the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to create a level playing field for EU industries; 3 – Building a pan-European CO2 capture network and moving towards circular carbon feedstocks; 4 – Placing circular economy at the heart of industrial decarbonisation; 5 – Enhancing the EU buildings’ agenda to significantly cut emissions.
Cembureau said “The European cement industry was one of the first sectors to present a 2050 Carbon Neutrality Roadmap following the publication of the European Green Deal. The past five years were marked by the development of a comprehensive EU legislative framework and the launch of significant decarbonisation investments in our industry. Now, with the deployment of carbon-neutral cements within our grasp, we need to implement transformative measures on innovation, infrastructure, public acceptance, digitalisation and skills development.”
Neustark sees potential in German market
04 January 2024Germany: Switzerland-based CO2 mineralisation technology developer Neustark says that it sees major potential for recycling concrete from construction and demolition waste (CDW) to produce carbon-negative products using its process in Germany. Neustark inaugurated its first German plant, and 12th overall, at Marzahn in Berlin in late 2023. Capital Online News has reported that the start-up estimates that Germany generates 60Mt/yr of CDW concrete, but only recycles 600,000t/yr (1%). This contrasts with international CDW concrete recycling rates as high as 15% in Switzerland and the US.
The start-up, founded at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich in 2019, currently absorbs 10kg/t of CO2 in its recycled materials, but aims to reach 60kg/t. Its investors include Holcim.
Holcim and others launch SMI Circularity Taskforce at COP28
04 December 2023UAE: Holcim has launched and become a founding member of the SMI Circularity Task Force in collaboration with the Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) and others. The SMI Circularity Taskforce aims to accelerate the development of the global circular economy, in complement to Holcim’s goal of recycling 10Mt of construction-demolition materials (CDM) by 2025, and 20Mt in Europe alone by 2030. Holcim and its partners launched the task force at the COP28 climate conference in the UAE on 4 December 2023.
Holcim chair and chief executive officer Jan Jenisch said "With our world’s rising population and urbanisation, we need to build better with less to raise living standards for all while preserving nature. Circularity is a gamechanger to make this happen at scale. At Holcim we are driving circular construction across all metropolitan areas where we operate to build cities from cities, recycling CDM into new building solutions. I am excited to be joining like-minded organisations to accelerate the shift to a more circular future together."
Taiwan: Asia Cement Corporation tested its waste wind turbine blade processing capacities using 12t of blades earlier in November 2023. The cement producer had previously processed 9t of waste turbine blades for use in its plants up to the end of October 2023. Asia Cement Corporation says that the waste consists of fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP), which is 60% silicon dioxide, calcium oxide and aluminium oxide and 40% polyester. The polyester can replace fossil fuels as alternative fuel (AF) for cement plants, while the other chemical compounds can serve as supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs).
Vinh Tan 1 coal-fired power plant supplies 811,000t of slag and ash to cement plants in first nine months of 2023
27 October 2023Vietnam: Cement producers received 811,000t of boiler slag and fly ash from the Vinh Tan 1 coal-fired power plant in Binh Thuan during the first nine months of 2023. This corresponds to 74% of the volume of the by-products generated at the plant during the period. Việt Nam News has reported that the nearby Vinh Tan 4 coal-fired power plant also ‘almost entirely’ avoided waste in the same way. The Vinh Tan 1 coal-fired power plant ended the period with 4.3Mt of ash and slag in stockpiles, while the neighbouring Vinh Tan 2 Thermal Power Plant had 7Mt.
The provincial government of Binh Thuan Province has lobbied the Ministry of Construction to review and adjust current requirements around HDPE liner use, water quality testing and radiation safety in order to facilitate the use of boiler slag and fly ash in cement and other construction products.
Spain: Cementos Molins has processed 75,000t of waste into alternative raw materials for use in its cement production since opening its Barcelona alternative raw materials plant in September 2022. The plant has a production capacity of 200,000t/yr. It produces the materials from construction and demolition waste and various industrial by-products.
Cementos Molins’ director of corporate development and sustainability, Carlos Martínez, said “Our commitment to the environment is intrinsically linked to our business model, which is based on the development of sustainable and innovative materials.” He continued “We provide a second life to industrial and construction waste that would otherwise end up in landfills, generating high-quality sustainable products from them. The plant has enabled all our cements to incorporate alternative raw materials in their production process. Furthermore, we are working to reduce the carbon footprint of all our concretes, ensuring that, in the short term, all of them include recycled aggregates in their manufacture."
Cemex UK supplies by-pass dust to farmers
24 October 2023UK: Cemex UK says that it has collected 130,000t of by-pass dust (BPD) from its Rugby cement plant in Warwickshire since 2015. The producer supplies the BPD to the agriculture sector, where it can replace traditional fertilisers and lime due to its high lime and potassium content. Additionally, Cemex UK has sponsored research into this and other circular economic uses of BPD, including an on-going study which claimed the Carbon Journey Award at the Eco Innovation North West Awards 2023.
Cemex’s Europe regional head of sustainability Paul Fletcher said “We are very proud of our partnership with Silverwoods and the considerable positive impact their innovation and expertise has had on our ability to reuse BPD for other applications. We believe it leads the way in our industry and presents real potential to be adapted elsewhere across our operations. Not only does it benefit the environment by reducing the amount of materials that need to be disposed of, but it generates a product that has a value for farmers and helps cut the use of traditional materials.” He added “This partnership demonstrates that to deliver true circularity, more industrial by-products, including those from different sectors of the economy, need to be used as secondary resources, rather than primarily be seen as waste. If this is to be achieved, a new perspective is needed to boost circular economy practices, with regulations and permitting supporting this proactively.”