technology, energy efficiency and environmental externalities in the ...

General 1
1. GENERAL
Rapid industrialization and infrastructure development in Asian developing countries has
led to higher cement consumption, and eventually increased production requirement.
Though the production increased mainly due to extended plant capacities and introduction
of new factories, little attention was paid to efficient energy utilization and environmental
pollution control in the cement industry of Asian countries.
Cement is a highly energy intensive product. In a cement factory, the energy bill normally
accounts for 20-25% of the total production cost. The major energy consuming areas in
cement industry are the high-temperature processes; almost 55-85% of the energy input of
the final product is consumed in the high-temperature kiln. Advanced technologies for
waste heat recovery and rationalization of energy use could offer significant energy saving
opportunities in cement industry which is ever exploding due to the rapid global
infrastructure development, especially in developing countries.
This document addresses the cement production technologies in use, various measures for
efficient utilization of energy, major sources of pollution, and the techniques and practices
in vogue to abate pollution in the cement industry to the best possible extent. It further
discusses about other environmental problems such as noise pollution, ground vibration
etc., which are serious concerns for the environmentalists in developed countries, as well as
the possibilities of utilization of waste from other industries by the cement industry. Finally,
country reports on the cement industry for four Asian developing countries, namely, P.R.
China, India, the Philippines and Sri Lanka, which are preceded by a cross-country
comparison of the industry.