JK Cement hasannounced the inauguration of a new production line at its Panna Plant. This development marks a significant milestone in the company’s expansion strategy and reaffirms its commitment to meeting the growing demand for cement while setting its position as a key industry player.

The new production line at the Panna Plant effectively doubles its clinker production capacity to 6.6 million metric tons per annum (MTPA), up from the previous 3.3 MTPA. This expansion positions JK Cement to cater efficiently to the increasing demand for cement across Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Central India.

Dr Raghavpat Singhania, Managing Director, JK Cement Ltd., said, “JK Cement is built on a foundation of growth and expansion. Our new Panna Plant production line is a key pillar in our comprehensive business expansion plan, propelling us towards our vision of becoming a leading player in the cement industry. This strategic expansion allows us to meet the rising demand for high-quality cement, ultimately enhancing our ability to serve our customers. We remain committed to delivering value to all stakeholders and contributing to the nation’s development.”

Madhavkrishna Singhania, Deputy Managing Director and CEO, JK Cement Ltd., commented, “The launch of our new production line underscores JK Cement’s unwavering commitment to achieving long-term growth and operational excellence. This expansion empowers us to optimize production processes, unlock our full potential, and position ourselves for the future of the cement industry.”

The new production line integrates advanced automation systems for precise control and monitoring, minimising human intervention and enhancing efficiency. State-of-the-art machinery and equipment ensure optimal performance, reliability, consistent output quality, and energy efficiency, reflecting JK Cement’s commitment to sustainability. The plant incorporates energy-saving technologies, optimised kiln systems, and waste heat recovery systems to reduce energy consumption and lower the carbon footprint. Stringent quality control measures in the plant guarantee that cement products meet the highest industry standards.

Additionally, the Panna Plant expansion project generates employment opportunities, contributing to socio-economic growth in the region. JK Cement actively engages with the local community through educational, healthcare, and social initiatives, strengthening its bond with stakeholders.

With a significant investment of Rs. 2850 Cr, the Panna Plant expansion project reflects JK Cement’s vision for sustainable growth, environmental protection, and contribution to economic and social development in the region.

Cement, flyash, ground granulated blast furnace slag(GGBFS) are the key components in the ternary blend used to make concrete. Nagesh Veeturi and Sumanta Sahu of KEC International – Civil Business, shed light on reducing the carbon footprint of cement production by using supplementary cementitious materials.

Cement is prime ingredient in concrete. One tonne of cement produces around 0.8 to 1 MT of carbon dioxide. It’s worth noting that efforts are being made to reduce the carbon footprint of cement production by using supplementary cementitious materials such as flyash and GGBS in concrete. In case of ternary blended concrete, supplementary cementitious materials flyash and GGBS are used in addition to cement, sand, aggregate, water and admixture.

To evaluate the percentage of replacement of cement with flyash and GGBS, one needs to understand the properties of concrete mix with flyash and GGBS as ingredients, structure strength, stripping time and durability requirements.

Properties of Supplementary Cementitious Materials

Flyash

Pulverised coal is used in thermal power plants for electricity generation. A by-product of this combustion reaction is fly ash. The electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) used inside chimneys of the power plants remove flyash before ejecting out the combustion gases into the atmosphere. Fly ash is a very fine particle like residue, which has pozzolanic properties. Hence it is often blended with cement and also used as partial replacement of cement.

Fly ash consists of silica (SiO₂), alumina (Al₂O₃) and calcium oxide (CaO) as its major components. Fly ash can be of two types – C type and F type. C type fly ash is rich in calcium oxide and possesses both cementitious and pozzolanic properties whereas F type fly ash is low in calcium oxide content and possesses only pozzolanic properties.

• Due to spherical shape of flyash, water demands in concrete is reduced, concrete becomes more cohesive.
• Silica in flyash reacts with calcium hydroxide released from cement to form CSH Gel, Formation of CSH Gel leads to increase in strength of concrete further and make the concrete dense and durable.
• 35 per cent of cement can be replaced with flyash according to IS specification. However, for mass concrete high volume flyash up to 50 per cent can be used.
• Early strength observed to be less for flyash concrete.
• Due to slow development of strength of concrete, stripping time gets delayed.

(Flyash produced from Thermal Power Plant)

Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS)

Blast furnace slag is a by-product of iron ore during iron extraction process. Amongst all mineral admixtures, blast furnace slag has the highest specific gravity (2.8 to 3.0). Typically, the slag fineness is slightly more than that of the cement.

There are various types of slag available like air cooled slag, expanded or foamed slag, granulated slag. Among these only the granulated slag is commonly used as a mineral admixture. It is a highly reactive form of slag and is usually quenched to form a hardened matter which is then grounded into particles of fineness almost same as that of cement. Hence the material is called as ‘ground granulated blast furnace slag’.

GGBFS possesses both cementitious and pozzolanic properties. An activator is needed to hydrate the slag.

• GGBFS increases the initial setting time of the concrete. But it does not alter the workability of the concrete much because its fineness is almost same as that of the cement.
• The early rate of strength gain in concrete is diminished by replacement of cement in the concrete with GGBFS.
• The final strength is improved by slag cement and also the durability of the concrete is increased.
• Concrete uses in marine construction are highly prone to chemical attack and corrosion. GGBFS as a concrete ingredient increases resistance against sulphate and chloride attack.

Normally concrete tends to segregate with GGBS as ingredient,

(GGBFS produced from Steel Plant)\

Concrete with flyash and GGBS as ingredients (Ternary Blend)

Ternary blended concrete is observed to be more cohesive and workable due to presence of flyash in concrete. Early strength gain can be achieved by using both Cement and GGBS in concrete. Concrete with ternary blend is win-win situation in terms of good product quality, optimising the cost of concrete, durability and resistance against chemical attack. Additionally, the use of SCMs in concrete can contribute to sustainability efforts by minimizing the cement content which is associated with significant carbon dioxide emission during its manufacturing process.

The hydration process of ternary blended concrete is divided into primary reaction by OPC and GGBS, pozzolanic reaction of GGBS and flyash as the secondary process. Both materials react with Calcium hydroxide produced by cement hydration to form CSH gel, which gives denser microstructure than conventional OPC concrete. The dense structure improves the durability properties of ternary blended concrete. Process yields to minimise penetration of aggressive chemicals such as sulphate, chloride as compared to conventional concrete mix.

Conclusion

Use of supplementary cementitious materials always improve the durability properties of concrete along with cost optimisation. Selection of supplementary cementitious materials, percentage replacement with cement is taken considering the strength and durability requirements of structure.

Ultratech Cement will once again use the state-of-the-art vertical roller mill technology from Gebr. Pfeiffer, to build three new clinker production lines.

As Ultratech Cement gears up for its three new clinker production lines, a corresponding follow-up order was awarded to Gebr. Pfeiffer SE, Germany, and its Indian subsidiary Gebr. Pfeiffer (India).

As the largest cement plant operator in India and one of the top ten in the world, Ultratech Cement from Mumbai, India, is contributing to shaping the future of the cement industry. At their Happy 3 plant, the cement raw material will be ground in an MVR 5000 R-4 mill. With a 5,300-kW drive, this mill can grind approx. 705 tph to a product fineness of 1.5 per cent R 212 µm. The integrated SLS 5300 VR high-efficiency classifier, with optimised flow and electrical efficiency, separates the product to achieve the target fineness.

For the grinding of approx. 45 t/h of pet coke or approx. 90 t/h of coal, three vertical roller mills of the type MPS 3550 BK will be supplied. These are equipped with a 1,300-kW gearbox, as standard. By using Pfeiffer MPS mills, Ultratech is able to process both pet coke and coal, as well as any mixture of these two materials, at the same speed of the grinding bowl, thus avoiding three expensive frequency converters. The new coal mills will be equipped with an integrated high-efficiency classifier type SLS 3750 BK of the latest design. 

It is important for UltraTech’s stock of spare parts that the latest MVR mills are characterised by grinding rollers based on the R=C principle, as this brings significant advantages for the customer. It means that these mills are equipped with grinding rollers that, equipped with the corresponding grinding elements, can be used, along with the appropriate power modules, for raw meal grinding as well as for cement grinding.

As the components of rollers, grinding roller suspension system, roller arms in cement and raw mills are identical with the ones which the customer has already received from Gebr. Pfeiffer, he requires a smaller number of spare parts in stock. This is because the components mentioned can be used for all his cement and raw mills.

The MVR 5000 R-4 mill for the Happy 3 plant has four actively redundant grinding rollers and can also be operated with two grinding rollers in the event of planned or unplanned maintenance work. This mill can then still produce approximately 70 per cent of the nominal capacity, so that the cement rotary kiln can continue to be fed with raw material.

The MVR mills are equipped by Gebr. Pfeiffer with the modern systems for preventive, maintenance-oriented condition monitoring. This will enable the customer to implement modern, digital maintenance concepts. The MPS mills will be prepared to include such options at a later point in time.

Order execution will be jointly by the subsidiary Gebr. Pfeiffer (India) and Gebr. Pfeiffer SE (Germany). The entire customer support and plant engineering will be carried out by competent Pfeiffer engineers in Noida.

The core components, such as gearbox, grinding bowl, grinding roller suspension system and the grinding rollers, are supplied from Europe by Gebr. Pfeiffer SE. The remaining components, such as the foundation parts, the housings, the classifiers and most of the plant components will be provided by Gebr. Pfeiffer (India).

The Customer Support Centre in Noida, being close to the customer, will later also provide support for the plants. This can be done in real terms by sending personnel to the plants or via remote data access.

For this purpose, Gebr. Pfeiffer offers hardware and software solutions, which are supported by competent technical personnel during normal office hours, if possible, in the local language. The picture shows an MVR mill of similar size (Type MVR 5000 R-4).