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48 min ago 2 min read
European research firm Cement Innovation for Climate (CI4C) has started operations at Europe’s first pure oxyfuel cement research and development (R&D) facility, targeting carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction across the regional cement industry.
Backed by €120m ($137m) of investments, the catch4climate facility uses a pure oxyfuel process for CO2 capture, designed by global cement machinery manufacturer Thyssenkrupp Polysius.
The site is co-located at Schwenk Zement’s Mergelstetten cement plant in southwest Germany, fitted with a dedicated rotary kiln line with a clinker production capacity of 450 metric tonnes per day.
On-site clinker production began at the end of May this year, with the first supply of oxygen delivered in mid-June.
The pure oxyfuel kiln system replaces ambient air with pure oxygen in the clinker burning system, eliminating atmospheric nitrogen from the process and creating a highly concentrated stream of CO2.
Over time, CI4C aims for captured CO2 to be used for sequestration or to be utilised as feedstock across a range of industries.
CI4C plans to develop the technology to create the foundation for large-scale deployment of CO2 capture technologies across the cement industry.
Founded in 2019, CI4C is a partnership between European cement manufacturers Vicat, Dyckerhoff, Heidelberg Materials, and Schwenk Zement.
The R&D facility reportedly did not receive any public funding.
Clinker is the key binding agent in cement manufacturing, which is essential to concrete production, the most widely used construction material globally.
According to the European Commission, the cement sector is responsible for around 7% of CO2 emissions globally, and approximately 4% in the EU.
