Impact of the use of alternative fuels in cement production on emission of harmful pollutants

Abstract

Cement industry is a huge energy consumer, and at the same time a huge greenhouse gases generator – approx. 7% seven percent of the total global CO2 emission in 2010 (Deja, Uliasz-Bochenczyk and Mokrzycki, 2010). High fuel consumption weakens the economy of the process and the acceptance of cement’s market price, so many cement companies have turned to research to use alternative fuels in production in order to reduce both the production costs and greenhouse gas emissions. However, due to the fact that this process is basically a waste incineration, the cement industry is constantly under pressure from the general public and environmental associations, so the tests are constantly being carried out to determine emissions of harmful pollutants during the use of various alternative materials in the cement production process. This paper investigates the impact of the use of some alternative fuels (scrap tires, used oils, waste from the coal industry, waste from the tanneries and leather industry, waste from oil refining – filter cake and oily wipes & rags) in an amount of 10% (energy) on emission of harmful pollutants in cement production. The results obtained by these tests show that, although there are evident differences in the content of individual pollutants for different types of alternative fuels, total emissions stays within statutory limits.