ACC has deployed huge technical resources and also made sizable investments for pre-processing facilities and feeding system in various plants for use of AFR.
Looking into the global challenges of climate change on account of GHG emissions, fast depletion of natural resources like fossil fuels, limestone and natural gypsum, ACC has developed a sustainable development vision which includes use of least amount of virgin materials and minimizing the GHG emission in the entire value chain of cement manufacturing and use. Co-processing of alternative fuels in place of fossil fuels and use of non carbonaceous raw material are aligned to the company climate change mitigation strategy.
ACC has deployed huge technical resources and also made sizable investments for pre-processing facilities and feeding system in various plants of ACC for use of alternative fuels and raw materials in cement manufacturing process. KN Rao, Director, Environment and Energy Conservation, ACC Ltd, says, ?ACC has been using successfully close to half a million tonne of alternative fuels and raw materials annually and hope to increase this quantity substantially in the coming years as necessary infrastructure has been created in most of the plants. This initiative is helping the entire country for safe and sustainable disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes from various industries and municipal solid waste, and helping the country to achieve energy security and minimise the GHG footprint of the country.?
ACC?s AFR team now offers total solutions for waste management including testing, suggestions for reuse/recycle and co-processing under the brand name of Geocycle. Co-processing is the act of adapting an existing industrial process whereby certain so-called ?waste? materials may be put to use to serve as alternative resources either as fuel or as alternative raw material in cement kilns, dryers and captive power plants. All this is attempted while assuring the quality of the end product and occupational health and safety of employees.
Rao highlights some of the initiatives taken by ACC with the use of AFR:
- A formal policy framework to promote the use of alternative fuels and raw materials
- Pre-processing platform and feeding system in different plants of ACC for different categories of waste (solid, liquid, slurry, sludge, gas) with necessary safety system. Each of our cement plants has been mapped for its AFR profile.
- Installation of machinery and equipment for AFR feeding wherever required.
- AFR awareness programmes are conducted in all our plants.
- Establishment of Regional Sustainable Development Federations (RSDFs) in North, East and South-west India.
- Identification of wastes generated by other industries across the country to examine the feasibility for co-processing these wastes in our kilns, dryers and captive power plants.
- Testing of hazardous waste samples to assess the scope of their usage as AFR.
Rao sums up, ?ACC?s AFR team is working closely with government, and central and state pollution control boards to help popularise co-processing of waste in cement kilns.?
ACC?s AFR team is working closely with government, control boards to help popularise co-processing of waste in cement kilns.