Economy & Market

Clean & Green

Published

11 years ago

February 28, 2015

admin

There is renewed focus on making the cement industry cleaner and greener by optimizing various processes of manufacturing, storage and distribution that will help reduce the carbon footprint and make the industry far more profitable and sustainable.
Though Indian cement industry is one of the most efficient in the world, it still produced 137 tonne of CO2 in 2010 – approximately 7 per cent of India?s total manmade CO2 emission. The Indian cement industry has made strong efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. It has successfully reduced CO2 emission from 1.12 kg CO2 per tonne cement in 1996 to 0.719 kg CO2/tonne cement in 2010. Today, awareness of sustainability in cement industry has picked up momentum and several efforts are on integrating the sustainability issues (essentially in energy conservation, resource optimisation and environment) with business planning and reviews. Cement industry needs to focus on five broad categories of carbon emission reduction levers, viz., thermal and electrical energy efficiency, co-processing of alternate fuels and raw materials, clinker substitution, waste heat recovery for power generation and adoption of new technologies like CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage), algal growth promotion and use of bio fuels.

Technological improvement is a key pillar in the cement industry?s drive to reduce emissions levels and energy consumption. Research and development investments have enabled cement producers worldwide to install modern, energy-efficient technology in new, and to some extent, in existing, cement plants. New technologies have enabled increased use of clinker substitutes and alternative fuels in cement production, leading to significant direct (eg, from limestone decarbonisation and fuel burning) CO2 emissions reductions. Technology developments have also enabled significant indirect emissions reductions (eg, from electricity use). Indian cement industry have comparatively better technology as most of the plants are new and they are equipped with latest technologies.

Says JC Toshniwal, Executive Director, Wonder Cement, ?Almost all cement plants are today working on improving their fuel efficiency, power efficiency, renewable energy, waste heat recovery (WHR), etc. So all these are now focus points towards sustainability in the industry. Cement industry in India is one of the most efficient globally, may be better than global level, in terms of power and fuel consumption.? He adds, ?Now the focus has gradually shifted towards renewable energy, WHR, and blended cement which also help in reducing CO2 generation. The industry is also working on reduction of SOx and NOx, which are adverse to the environment. For this purpose, cement manufacturers are setting up different types of calciners like two-stage calciners where NOx generation is reduced. In the next 3-4 years, you can see some drastic changes in the industry on these parameters.?

Anil Kumar Pillai, Chief Executive Officer, JSW Cement, throws light on some of the possible ways to increase sustainability in cement production. According to Pillai, use of the latest technology equipment/technology up-gradation for older plants is a must. Waste heat recovery boilers should be installed to generate power from waste hot gases; use of alternative raw materials; use of fluxes to lower the burning temperature in cement kiln to lower the energy consumption; use of chemical gypsum to the optimum level so that mineral gypsum may be conserved; use of grinding aids to reduce electrical energy consumption; and production of blended cements such as PPC, PSC, limestone blended cement etc are some other areas. He adds, ?However, judging from the possibilities to improve sustainability by optimizing the raw material supply, adopting latest energy efficient technologies, optimizing the production process, substituting alternative fuels and raw materials, and finally blending the final product with suitable admixtures, it seems that the emphasis of most cement producers is still focused on selected parts of these different possibilities, especially the final substitution of cement by various mineral admixtures. It is therefore imperative for the cement producers to adapt fast enough and to a sufficient degree to exploiting all the possible options to reduce their environmental footprint.?

Key levers to reduce emission in the Indian cement industry are increased rates of blending leading to a reduction in clinker to cement ratio, increased use of AFR, widespread implementation of WHR, transportation of raw materials through conveyor belt instead of road transport, installation of various VFD/high energy efficient equipment to reduce SPC. Cement manufacturing process from surface mining/quarrying, locating main acclimatisation unit near limestone deposits, transporting clinker through rail, transporting fly ash through pipeline are few measures which will help in achieving and sustaining this targets.

?Blended cement proportion in total Indian cement industry is approximately 70 per cent. Manufacturing of PPC results in approximately 20-30 per cent reduction in CO2 against 1 MT of OPC production also manufacturing of PSC results in 30-35 per cent reduction in CO2 mitigation,? says VP Sharma, Managing Director & CEO, ABG Cement. ?We at ABGCL will be producing 100 per cent blended cement. The target goal for ABGCL to reduce carbon footprint by 2020 is 30 per cent for its equivalent of OPC production by employing different methods like waste heat recovery, alternate fuel firing, installing solar panels on major building roofs and producing blended cement,? he points out. According to Sharma, Indian cement industry has huge potential in reduction of usage of fossil fuel by using alternative fuels – hazardous AFR like slag and non-hazardous AFRs like pet coke, shredded tyres, rice husk, bio masses, municipal waste etc. Present thermal substitution rate by usage of AFR is as low as 1-1.2 per cent against 40 per cent achieved by developed countries. He adds, ?The cement industry has shown great enthusiasm for installation of waste heat recovery system but we still have way to go for achieving its full potential. Installation of waste heat recovery system shall be made compulsory for all new cement projects and proper studies shall be made to make it highly efficient by 6/5 stage pre-heater systems. We are already in discussion with various vendors for installation of WHR system of 8-10 MW power generations with our six-stage pre-heater.?

Says Prabir Ray, Head RMC, Building Products Division and Key Accounts, UltraTech Cement, ?UltraTech is committed towards improving its sustainable footprint through constant innovation. We focus on producing quality products that meet the needs of our customers, while ensuring that we reduce our environmental footprint, take care of our employees? health and safety, and contribute to wider initiatives for our communities. We are a member of Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI), and we aim to improve our sustainable footprint in waste management, energy reduction, water conservation, biodiversity management, afforestation and emission reduction.? He further adds, ?We are strategically focusing on development of products and services that help customers build sustainable structures – structures which are more durable, more resource-efficient, more cost effective and more conducive to the human lifestyle. Innovation is the tool we have adopted to spearhead scientifically engineered products that complement future-ready construction practices.?

PAT impact
According to Pillai, Perform – Achieve – Trade (PAT) compliance could be treated as an important milestone in the journey towards energy excellence. With ever-rising cost of input energy, companies aspiring for such excellence are bound to gain sustainable strategic advantage and earn handsome dividends. By achieving PAT target, not only compliance is met but also organizations can move toward triple bottom line reporting. In spite of many benefits of the PAT scheme, the underlying principles of National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE) can only be realized if PAT is seen as milestone and not a destination in the long journey toward energy excellence. PAT scheme rewards the over achiever and penalise the underperformer.

Says Kamal Kumar, Chief General Manager, Holtec Consulting, ?Introduction of PAT scheme for energy intensive industries improve energy efficiency and facilitates cost effectiveness by certifying energy saving measures that could be traded through its market-based mechanism. It is a good scheme to achieve the target, but the parameters which have been fixed by the BEE are quite stringent, specifically for the old vintage plants. Largely, the PAT scheme will facilitate in reducing the energy consumption levels of the system.?

Reducing energy consumption will not only benefit the DC but would also have a lasting impact on the planet. One tonne (tonnes of oil equivalent) reduction in energy consumption can potentially reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 3.18 tonne. In addition to the above, the BEE conducts conferences and workshops on energy efficiency and advanced technologies. Companies could use such programs to train their employees for sustainable energy management. These employees could be further empowered by management to achieve higher performance through suitably designed key performance indicators (KPI).

?The PAT scheme has generated a lot of ripples in the energy intensive process industries and is perceived as a source of capital outflows in tough economic times. The PAT scheme aims at reducing the energy consumption per unit of output product. In the current situation, when increasing competition is already putting pressure on margins, reduction in energy cost will help boost the bottomline. For example, energy cost accounts for 35-40 per cent of total manufacturing expenses for Designated Consumers? (DCs) in the cement sector. So, reduction of 10 per cent in the energy cost could potentially boost operating profit margins by around 20 per cent,? says Pillai. He adds, ?With the new Companies Act mandating CSR spend, increased profit margins would also allow companies to contribute some portion of their profits to strengthening the community. Hence, the PAT scheme hits the sweet spot between the three pillars of the triple bottom line.?

The way ahead
The Indian cement industry is probably one of the most energy-efficient in the world today. Some of the plants have thermal and electrical specific energy consumption (SECs) comparable to the best cement plants in the world resulting in low emission intensities. The industry which is on the top in the Certified Emission Reductions Projects list registered with the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol has contributed significantly to the eco-friendly use of industrial wastes and thereby has succeeded in reducing its carbon footprint. However, the opportunity for improvement does exist, particularly in the area of five key levers that can contribute to emissions reductions such as alternative fuel and raw materials; energy efficiency; clinker substitution; waste heat recovery and newer technologies. This roadmap sets out a pathway by which the Indian cement industry can reach its targets to improve energy efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions by 2050, thereby laying the foundation for low-carbon growth in the years beyond.

MAJOR CHALLENGES

Selection of plant location – proximity sources of raw material, additive (gypsum, slag, fly ash, AFR etc)
Highly energy-intensive industry using non-renewable raw materials and thus emits large amount of CO2 especially from limestone and coal burning
Older cement plants have to invest heavily for technological up-gradation Marginal grade of limestone has to be compensated with low ash coal imported from South Africa, Indonesia etc.
Many limestone reserves are located in ecologically sensitive areas
About 90 per cent of limestone in India is extracted by blasting and less than 10 per cent by surface miner. Blasting has much higher environmental impact ? dust, noise, vibration, fly rock generation etc. Most of the limestone is quite hard and thus not suitable for extraction with surface miner
Solid waste generation and its proper management in mines (low grade limestone, clay etc)
Product is not recyclable
Challenges in maintaining stringent dust emission levels while material storage and handling
Challenges in maintaining NOx levels
Scarcity of water in most areas
Lack of railway siding at many plants
Availability of wagons from railways
Market pressure for high compressive strength
Lack of awareness among customers towards the environmental benefits of using blended cement (PSC, PPC etc)
Lack of captive power generation at most plants – high transmission losses have to be incurred while sourcing power from long distances

PERFORM – ACHIEVE – TRANSFER
Perform – Achieve-Trade (PAT) is the Energy Conservation drive launched by BEE (Bureau of Energy Efficiency) under National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency. Base line figures are average of past three years (2007-08, 2008-09 & 2009-10). Target has been given by BEE to reduce from baseline figures in a span of three years, starting April, 2012 and ending March 2015. PAT is applicable for energy intensive industries. It covers 563 designated consumers in eight sectors. The energy specific improvement target would have to be almost ?Unit Specific?. Each Designated Consumers (DC) is mandated to reduce its Special Energy Consumption (SEC) by a fixed percentage based on its current SEC (or baseline SEC) within the sectorial bandwidth. In Indian scenario, if we look at percentage wise, on an average 40 per cent energy consumed by industry, 7 per cent by Agriculture and Fisheries, 43 per cent commercial and services, 10 per cent household and others. This PAT scheme is participated by ?Designated Consumers? of energy intensive sectors – thermal power plant/iron and steel/cement/fertiliser/textile/pulp and paper/chloro-alkali. At the end of third year, Energy Saving Certificate will be issued to a DC, who will achieve target reduction from baseline. DC who will fail to achieve the target, penalty linked with value of non-compliance will be imposed. This ES Certificate can be traded to others who will fail to meet their target. This trading can be carried out between any two DCs. The exchange will also maintain data on traded prices, traded volume and trend. Special trading platform will be created in the two Power Exchanges (IEX and PXIL). This scheme has to come out very effective across industry. It is directly linked with profitability in long term. It will help in reducing cost and improve profitability.

GREENCO RATING
The first of its kind in the world the GreenCo Rating System by CII Godrej GBC, provides a much needed holistic framework to evaluate industries on their environmental performance. CII, through an extensive stakeholder consultation and interaction with experts, have developed the guidelines of GreenCo. This rating will act as a milestone for companies pursuing green to assess where they stand and help them in defining the path forward. Vasavadatta Cement, Sedam was awarded GreenCo Gold by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for the year 2012-15. It is the first cement plant to be certified under GreenCo, Green Company Rating System. Under the leadership of CK Jain, Unit Head, Vasavadatta Cement, Sedam has been able to achieve GreenCo Gold due to tremendous amounts of hard work taken by the plant for years together on various aspects of sustainability. Another major cement company that has bagged the GreenCo Certification is ACC, Thondebhavi Cement Works which has been rated GreenCo Silver.

Says Jain, ?The Green Company Rating System has helped us in effectively communicating to our stake holders about our commitment to sustainable growth, to reduce consumption of natural resources without jeopardising growth of the company. According to him one of the most important reasons behind applying for the rating system was to understand the company?s environmental performance on various aspects of environmental sustainability. This includes areas such as energy efficiency, water conservation, greenhouse gas emission, waste management, material conservation, recycling and recyclability, green supply chain, product stewardship, life cycle analysis, other areas like ventilation, biodiversity preservation, innovation, etc.

Jain further adds, ?GreenCo gives energy efficiency 20 per cent weightage. Energy costs also account for approximately 45 per cent of our expenditure. The system emphasises the need to have an energy policy, formation of cross-functional energy management cell, energy metering and monitoring systems, setting internal, national and international benchmarks and equipment wise efficiency monitoring. All these initiatives have a direct impact on the energy consumption of the plant as well as energy costs. The rating system has helped us in achieving our objectives of understanding our environmental performance on various aspects of environmental sustainability and in framing a long term roadmap on how to be greener.?

Concrete

Refractory demands in our kiln have changed

Published

4 days ago

February 20, 2026

admin

Radha Singh, Senior Manager (P&Q), Shree Digvijay Cement, points out why performance, predictability and life-cycle value now matter more than routine replacement in cement kilns.

As Indian cement plants push for higher throughput, increased alternative fuel usage and tighter shutdown cycles, refractory performance in kilns and pyro-processing systems is under growing pressure. In this interview, Radha Singh, Senior Manager (P&Q), Shree Digvijay Cement, shares how refractory demands have evolved on the ground and how smarter digital monitoring is improving kiln stability, uptime and clinker quality.

How have refractory demands changed in your kiln and pyro-processing line over the last five years?
Over the last five years, refractory demands in our kiln and pyro line have changed. Earlier, the focus was mostly on standard grades and routine shutdown-based replacement. But now, because of higher production loads, more alternative fuels and raw materials (AFR) usage and greater temperature variation, the expectation from refractory has increased.
In our own case, the current kiln refractory has already completed around 1.5 years, which itself shows how much more we now rely on materials that can handle thermal shock, alkali attack and coating fluctuations. We have moved towards more stable, high-performance linings so that we don’t have to enter the kiln frequently for repairs.
Overall, the shift has been from just ‘installation and run’ to selecting refractories that give longer life, better coating behaviour and more predictable performance under tougher operating conditions.

What are the biggest refractory challenges in the preheater, calciner and cooler zones?
• Preheater: Coating instability, chloride/sulphur cycles and brick erosion.
• Calciner: AFR firing, thermal shock and alkali infiltration.
• Cooler: Severe abrasion, red-river formation and mechanical stress on linings.
Overall, the biggest challenge is maintaining lining stability under highly variable operating conditions.

How do you evaluate and select refractory partners for long-term performance?
In real plant conditions, we don’t select a refractory partner just by looking at price. First, we see their past performance in similar kilns and whether their material has actually survived our operating conditions. We also check how strong their technical support is during shutdowns, because installation quality matters as much as the material itself.
Another key point is how quickly they respond during breakdowns or hot spots. A good partner should be available on short notice. We also look at their failure analysis capability, whether they can explain why a lining failed and suggest improvements.
On top of this, we review the life they delivered in the last few campaigns, their supply reliability and their willingness to offer plant-specific custom solutions instead of generic grades. Only a partner who supports us throughout the life cycle, which includes selection, installation, monitoring and post-failure analysis, fits our long-term requirement.

Can you share a recent example where better refractory selection improved uptime or clinker quality?
Recently, we upgraded to a high-abrasion basic brick at the kiln outlet. Earlier we had frequent chipping and coating loss. With the new lining, thermal stability improved and the coating became much more stable. As a result, our shutdown interval increased and clinker quality remained more consistent. It had a direct impact on our uptime.

How is increased AFR use affecting refractory behaviour?
Increased AFR use is definitely putting more stress on the refractory. The biggest issue we see daily is the rise in chlorine, alkalis and volatiles, which directly attack the lining, especially in the calciner and kiln inlet. AFR firing is also not as stable as conventional fuel, so we face frequent temperature fluctuations, which cause more thermal shock and small cracks in the lining.
Another real problem is coating instability. Some days the coating builds too fast, other days it suddenly drops, and both conditions impact refractory life. We also notice more dust circulation and buildup inside the calciner whenever the AFR mix changes, which again increases erosion.
Because of these practical issues, we have started relying more on alkali-resistant, low-porosity and better thermal shock–resistant materials to handle the additional stress coming from AFR.

What role does digital monitoring or thermal profiling play in your refractory strategy?
Digital tools like kiln shell scanners, IR imaging and thermal profiling help us detect weakening areas much earlier. This reduces unplanned shutdowns, helps identify hotspots accurately and allows us to replace only the critical sections. Overall, our maintenance has shifted from reactive to predictive, improving lining life significantly.

How do you balance cost, durability and installation speed during refractory shutdowns?
We focus on three points:
• Material quality that suits our thermal profile and chemistry.
• Installation speed, in fast turnarounds, we prefer monolithic.
• Life-cycle cost—the cheapest material is not the most economical. We look at durability, future downtime and total cost of ownership.
This balance ensures reliable performance without unnecessary expenditure.

What refractory or pyro-processing innovations could transform Indian cement operations?
Some promising developments include:
• High-performance, low-porosity and nano-bonded refractories
• Precast modular linings to drastically reduce shutdown time
• AI-driven kiln thermal analytics
• Advanced coating management solutions
• More AFR-compatible refractory mixes

These innovations can significantly improve kiln stability, efficiency and maintenance planning across the industry.

Concrete

Digital supply chain visibility is critical

Published

4 days ago

February 20, 2026

admin

MSR Kali Prasad, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Shree Cement, discusses how data, discipline and scale are turning Industry 4.0 into everyday business reality.

Over the past five years, digitalisation in Indian cement manufacturing has moved decisively beyond experimentation. Today, it is a strategic lever for cost control, operational resilience and sustainability. In this interview, MSR Kali Prasad, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Shree Cement, explains how integrated digital foundations, advanced analytics and real-time visibility are helping deliver measurable business outcomes.

How has digitalisation moved from pilot projects to core strategy in Indian cement manufacturing over the past five years?
Digitalisation in Indian cement has evolved from isolated pilot initiatives into a core business strategy because outcomes are now measurable, repeatable and scalable. The key shift has been the move away from standalone solutions toward an integrated digital foundation built on standardised processes, governed data and enterprise platforms that can be deployed consistently across plants and functions.
At Shree Cement, this transition has been very pragmatic. The early phase focused on visibility through dashboards, reporting, and digitisation of critical workflows. Over time, this has progressed into enterprise-level analytics and decision support across manufacturing and the supply chain,
with clear outcomes in cost optimisation, margin protection and revenue improvement through enhanced customer experience.
Equally important, digital is no longer the responsibility of a single function. It is embedded into day-to-day operations across planning, production, maintenance, despatch and customer servicing, supported by enterprise systems, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) data platforms, and a structured approach to change management.

Which digital interventions are delivering the highest ROI across mining, production and logistics today?
In a capital- and cost-intensive sector like cement, the highest returns come from digital interventions that directly reduce unit costs or unlock latent capacity without significant capex.
Supply chain and planning (advanced analytics): Tools for demand forecasting, S&OP, network optimisation and scheduling deliver strong returns by lowering logistics costs, improving service levels, and aligning production with demand in a fragmented and regionally diverse market.
Mining (fleet and productivity analytics): Data-led mine planning, fleet analytics, despatch discipline, and idle-time reduction improve fuel efficiency and equipment utilisation, generating meaningful savings in a cost-heavy operation.
Manufacturing (APC and process analytics): Advanced Process Control, mill optimisation, and variability reduction improve thermal and electrical efficiency, stabilise quality and reduce rework and unplanned stoppages.
Customer experience and revenue enablement (digital platforms): Dealer and retailer apps, order visibility and digitally enabled technical services improve ease of doing business and responsiveness. We are also empowering channel partners with transparent, real-time information on schemes, including eligibility, utilisation status and actionable recommendations, which improves channel satisfaction and market execution while supporting revenue growth.
Overall, while Artificial Intelligence (AI) and IIoT are powerful enablers, it is advanced analytics anchored in strong processes that typically delivers the fastest and most reliable ROI.

How is real-time data helping plants shift from reactive maintenance to predictive and prescriptive operations?
Real-time and near real-time data is driving a more proactive and disciplined maintenance culture, beginning with visibility and progressively moving toward prediction and prescription.
At Shree Cement, we have implemented a robust SAP Plant Maintenance framework to standardise maintenance workflows. This is complemented by IIoT-driven condition monitoring, ensuring consistent capture of equipment health indicators such as vibration, temperature, load, operating patterns and alarms.
Real-time visibility enables early detection of abnormal conditions, allowing teams to intervene before failures occur. As data quality improves and failure histories become structured, predictive models can anticipate likely failure modes and recommend timely interventions, improving MTBF and reducing downtime. Over time, these insights will evolve into prescriptive actions, including spares readiness, maintenance scheduling, and operating parameter adjustments, enabling reliability optimisation with minimal disruption.
A critical success factor is adoption. Predictive insights deliver value only when they are embedded into daily workflows, roles and accountability structures. Without this, they remain insights without action.

In a cost-sensitive market like India, how do cement companies balance digital investment with price competitiveness?
In India’s intensely competitive cement market, digital investments must be tightly linked to tangible business outcomes, particularly cost reduction, service improvement, and faster decision-making.
This balance is achieved by prioritising high-impact use cases such as planning efficiency, logistics optimisation, asset reliability, and process stability, all of which typically deliver quick payback. Equally important is building scalable and governed digital foundations that reduce the marginal cost of rolling out new use cases across plants.
Digitally enabled order management, live despatch visibility, and channel partner platforms also improve customer centricity while controlling cost-to-serve, allowing service levels to improve without proportionate increases in headcount or overheads.
In essence, the most effective digital investments do not add cost. They protect margins by reducing variability, improving planning accuracy, and strengthening execution discipline.

How is digitalisation enabling measurable reductions in energy consumption, emissions, and overall carbon footprint?
Digitalisation plays a pivotal role in improving energy efficiency, reducing emissions and lowering overall carbon intensity.
Real-time monitoring and analytics enable near real-time tracking of energy consumption and critical operating parameters, allowing inefficiencies to be identified quickly and corrective actions to be implemented. Centralised data consolidation across plants enables benchmarking, accelerates best-practice adoption, and drives consistent improvements in energy performance.
Improved asset reliability through predictive maintenance reduces unplanned downtime and process instability, directly lowering energy losses. Digital platforms also support more effective planning and control of renewable energy sources and waste heat recovery systems, reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
Most importantly, digitalisation enables sustainability progress to be tracked with greater accuracy and consistency, supporting long-term ESG commitments.

What role does digital supply chain visibility play in managing demand volatility and regional market dynamics in India?
Digital supply chain visibility is critical in India, where demand is highly regional, seasonality is pronounced, and logistics constraints can shift rapidly.
At Shree Cement, planning operates across multiple horizons. Annual planning focuses on capacity, network footprint and medium-term demand. Monthly S&OP aligns demand, production and logistics, while daily scheduling drives execution-level decisions on despatch, sourcing and prioritisation.
As digital maturity increases, this structure is being augmented by central command-and-control capabilities that manage exceptions such as plant constraints, demand spikes, route disruptions and order prioritisation. Planning is also shifting from aggregated averages to granular, cost-to-serve and exception-based decision-making, improving responsiveness, lowering logistics costs and strengthening service reliability.

How prepared is the current workforce for Industry 4.0, and what reskilling strategies are proving most effective?
Workforce preparedness for Industry 4.0 is improving, though the primary challenge lies in scaling capabilities consistently across diverse roles.
The most effective approach is to define capability requirements by role and tailor enablement accordingly. Senior leadership focuses on digital literacy for governance, investment prioritisation, and value tracking. Middle management is enabled to use analytics for execution discipline and adoption. Frontline sales and service teams benefit from
mobile-first tools and KPI-driven workflows, while shop-floor and plant teams focus on data-driven operations, APC usage, maintenance discipline, safety and quality routines.
Personalised, role-based learning paths, supported by on-ground champions and a clear articulation of practical benefits, drive adoption far more effectively than generic training programmes.

Which emerging digital technologies will fundamentally reshape cement manufacturing in the next decade?
AI and GenAI are expected to have the most significant impact, particularly when combined with connected operations and disciplined processes.
Key technologies likely to reshape the sector include GenAI and agentic AI for faster root-cause analysis, knowledge access, and standardisation of best practices; industrial foundation models that learn patterns across large sensor datasets; digital twins that allow simulation of process changes before implementation; and increasingly autonomous control systems that integrate sensors, AI, and APC to maintain stability with minimal manual intervention.
Over time, this will enable more centralised monitoring and management of plant operations, supported by strong processes, training and capability-building.

Concrete

Cement Additives for Improved Grinding Efficiency

Published

4 days ago

February 20, 2026

admin

Shreesh A Khadilkar discusses how advanced additive formulations allow customised, high-performance and niche cements—offering benefits while supporting blended cements and long-term cost and carbon reduction.

Cement additives are chemicals (inorganic and organic) added in small amounts (0.01 per cent to 0.2 per cent by weight) during cement grinding. Their main job? Reduce agglomeration, prevent pack-set, and keep the mill running smoother. Thus, these additions primarily improve, mill thru-puts, achieve lower clinker factor in blended cements PPC/PSC/PCC. Additionally, these additives improve concrete performance of cements or even for specific special premium cements with special USPs like lower setting times or for reduced water permeability in the resultant cement mortars and concrete (water repellent /permeation resistant cements), corrosion resistance etc.
The cement additives are materials which could be further differentiated as:

Grinding aids:
• Bottlenecks in cement grinding capacity, such materials can enhance throughputs
• Low specific electrical energy consumption during cement grinding
• Reduce “Pack set” problem and improve powder flowability

Quality improvers:
• Opportunity for further clinker factor reduction
• Solution for delayed cement setting or strength development issues at early or later ages.

Others: materials which are used for specific special cements with niche properties as discussed in the subsequent pages.
When cement additives are used as grinding aids or quality improvers, in general the additives reduce the inter-particle forces; reduce coating over grinding media and mill internals. Due to creation of like charges on cement particles, there is decreased agglomeration, much improved flowability, higher generation of fines better dispersion of particles in separator feed and reduction of mill filling level (decrease of residence time). However, in VRM grinding; actions need to be taken to have stable bed formation on the table.
It has been reported in literature and also substantiated by a number of detailed evaluations of different cement additive formulations in market, that the cement additive formulations are a combination of different chemical compounds, typically composed of:

Accelerator/s for the hydration reaction of cements which are dependent on the acceleration effect desired in mortar compressive strengths at early or later ages, the choice of the materials is also dependent on clinker quality and blending components (flyash / slag) or a mix of both.
Water reducer / workability / wet-ability enhancer, which would show impact on the resultant cement mortars and concrete. Some of the compounds (retarders) like polysaccharide derivatives, gluconates etc., show an initial retarding action towards hydration which result in reducing the water requirements for the cements thus act as water reducers, or it could be some appropriate polymeric molecules which show improved wet-ability and reduce water demand. These are selected based on the mineral component and type of cements (PPC/PSC /PCC).
Grinding aids: Compounds that work as Grinding Aid i.e. which would enhance Mill thru-put on one hand as well as would increase the early strengths due to the higher fines generation/ or activation of cement components. These compounds could be like alkanol-amines such as TIPA, DEIPA, TEA etc. or could be compounds like glycols and other poly-ols, depending on whether it is OPC or PPC or PSC or PCC manufacture.

Mechanism of action — Step By Step—

Reduce Agglomeration, Cement particles get electrostatically charged during grinding, stick together, form “flocs”, block mill efficiency, waste energy. Grinding aid molecules adsorb onto particle surfaces, neutralise charge, prevent re-agglomeration.
Improve Powder Flowability, Adsorbed molecules create a lubricating layer, particles slide past each other easier, better mill throughput, less “dead zone” buildup.
Also reduces caking on mill liners, diaphragms, and separator screens, less downtime for cleaning.
Enhance Grinding Efficiency (Finer Product Faster), By preventing agglomeration, particles stay dispersed more surface area exposed to grinding media, finer grind achieved with same energy input, Or: same fineness achieved with less energy, huge savings.
Example:
• Without aid ? 3500 cm²/g Blaine needs 40 kWh/ton
• With use of optimum grinding aid same fineness at 32 kWh/ton 20 per cent energy savings
Reduce Pack Set and Silo Caking Grinding aids (GA) inhibit hydration of free lime (CaO) during storage prevents premature hardening or “pack set” in silos. especially critical in humid climates or with high free lime clinker.
It may be stated here that Overdosing of GA can cause: – Foaming in mill (especially with glycols) reduces grinding efficiency, retardation of cement setting (especially with amines/acids), odor issues (in indoor mills) – Corrosion of mill components (if acidic aids used improperly)
The best practice to optimise use of GA is Start with 0.02 per cent to 0.05 per cent dosage test fineness, flow, and set time adjust up/down. Due to static charge of particles, the sample may stick to the sides of sampler pipe and so sampling need to be properly done.
Depending on type of cements i.e. OPC, PPC, PSC, PCC, the grinding aids combinations need to be optimised, a typical Poly carboxylate ether also could be a part of the combo grinding aids

Cement additives for niche properties of the cement in concrete.
The cement additives can also be tailor made to create specific niche properties in cements, OPC, PPC, PSC and PCC to create premium or special brands. The special niche properties of the cement being its additional USP of such cement products, and are useful for customers to build a durable concrete structure with increased service life.

Such properties could be:
• Additives for improved concrete performance of cements, high early strength in PPC/PSC/PCC, much reduced water demand in cement, cements with improved slump retentivity in concrete, self-compacting, self levelling in concrete, cements with improved adhesion property of the cement mortar
• Water repellence / water proofing, permeability resistance in mortars and concrete.
• Biocidal cement
• Photo catalytic cements
• Cements with negligible ASR reactions etc.

Additives for cements for improved concrete performance
High early strengths: Use of accelerators. These are chemical compounds which enhance the degree of hydration of cement. These can include setting or hardening accelerators depending on whether their action occurs in the plastic or hardened state respectively. Thus, the setting accelerators reduce the setting time, whereas the hardening accelerators increase the early age strengths. The setting accelerators act during the initial minutes of the cement hydration, whereas the hardening accelerators act mainly during the initial days of hydration.
Chloride salts are the best in class. However, use of chloride salts as hardening accelerators are strongly discouraged for their action in promoting the corrosion of rebar, thus, chloride-free accelerators are preferred. The hardening accelerators could be combinations of compounds like nitrate, nitrite and thiocyanate salts of alkali or alkaline earth metals or thiosulphate, formate, and alkanol amines depending on the cement types.
However, especially in blended cements (PPC/PSC/PCC the increased early strengths invariably decrease the 28 day strengths. These aspects lead to creating combo additives along with organic polymers to achieve improved early strengths as well as either same or marginally improved 28 days strengths with reduced clinker factor in the blended cement, special OPC with reduced admixture requirements. With use of appropriate combination of inorganic and organic additives we could create an OPC with substantially reduced water demand or improved slump retentivity. Use of such an OPC would show exceptional concrete performance in high grade concretes as it would exhibit lower admixture requirements in High Grade Concretes.
PPC with OPC like properties: With the above concept we could have a PPC, having higher percentage flyash, with a combo cement additive which would have with concrete performance similar to OPC in say M40/M50 concrete. Such a PPC would produce a high-strength PPC concrete (= 60 MPa @ 28d) + improved workability, durability and sustainability.
Another interesting aspect could also be of using ultrafine fine flyash /ultrafine slags as additions in OPC/PPC/PSC for achieving lower clinker factor as well as to achieve improved later age strengths with or without a combo cement additive.
The initial adhesion property at sites of especially PPC/PSC/PCC based mortars can be improved through use of appropriate organic polymers addition during the manufacture of these cements. Such cements would have a better adhesion property for plastering/brick bonding etc., as it has much lower rebound loss of their mortars in such applications.
It is needless to mention here that with use of additives, we could also have cement with viscosity modifying cement additives, for self-compaction and self-leveling concrete performance.
Use of Phosphogypsum retards the setting time of cements, we can use additive different additive combos to overcome retardation and improve the 1 day strengths of the cements and concretes.

About the author:
Shreesh Khadilkar, Consultant & Advisor, Former Director Quality & Product Development, ACC, a seasoned consultant and advisor, brings over 37 years of experience in cement manufacturing, having held leadership roles in R&D and product development at ACC Ltd. With deep expertise in innovative cement concepts, he is dedicated to sharing his knowledge and improving the performance of cement plants globally.