Cementos Molins factory reduces emissions through recovery of waste and renewable energy
Published by Emily Thomas,
Deputy Editor
World Cement,
Cementos Molins Industrial's energy policy has made it possible to close 2020 with new improvements in the environmental behaviour of the Sant Vicenç dels Horts factory. The records accumulated in the last year show a behaviour that has made it possible to comply once again the applicable legislation and the Integrated Environmental Authorisation (AAI) itself. With this, the emissions from furnace 6 have remained well below the limits established for all registered chemical compounds, to the point that 6 of the 7 measured have not even reached 15% of the maximum permitted levels.
The energy recovery of waste is one of the main lines of improvement in which CMI has focused many of its efforts in recent years. In 2020, 44% of the thermal energy consumed in the Portland kiln has been obtained through the use of alternative fuels. This has led to the saving of 53 thousand t of petroleum coke, an amount equivalent to the annual energy consumption of 76 thousand homes. The 84 309 tons of waste used also have the benefit of having avoided a landfill as a destination, with the consequent pollution problems that this causes. This also has an impact on reducing CO2 emissions which is that the residues that come from biomass, considered carbon-neutral fuels, have allowed the saving of about 107 thousand t of CO2, a figure similar to that emitted during a year 91 thousand cars.
In addition, it should be noted that in 2020 18.5% of the electrical energy consumed by the factory came from renewable sources, thanks to the formalisation of a PPA contract for the supply of electricity from this source. This use has meant the reduction of almost 5000 tons of indirect CO2 emissions, an amount equivalent to the annual energy consumption of 7000 homes.
2020 has also been the year in which tools have been implemented to continue minimising the impact of industrial activity on the environment. Among them, it is worth mentioning the installation of duplicate equipment for all the parameters that must be monitored in the continuous measurement systems of the emissions from furnace 6, which transmit the data ‘online’ to the Generalitat de Catalunya. This ensures the availability of information in the event of possible equipment incidents. Also, as a continuous improvement to control emissions, a new system for reducing emissions of hydrochloric acid (HCl) has been installed in furnace 6 and also a system for reducing emissions of sulfur oxides (SO2) in CCS ovens.
Both the results achieved and these investments highlight CMI's commitment to improving the impact of emissions to the atmosphere, continuously incorporating the best available techniques.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/22022021/cementos-molins-factory-reduces-emissions-through-recovery-of-waste-and-renewable-energy/
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