The cement industry is responsible for about 8% of global CO2 emissions and is facing significant pressure to decarbonize. The sector is committed to producing net zero concrete by 2050 and is committed to acting now to make the needed technology ready for global deployment by 2030.
Cement-based building constructions. Image credit: Andreas Rasmussen via Unsplash, free license
Cement production involves three stages: raw material preparation, clinker production & clinker grinding. Different raw materials are mixed and milled into a homogeneous powder, from which clinker is produced in high-temperature kilns where direct emissions of CO2 occur.
Typically, 30‑40% of direct CO2 emissions comes from the combustion of fuels and the remaining 60‑70% comes from the chemical reactions involved in the calcination of limestone to calcium oxide.
Global clinker is expected to remain the main ingredient in global cement in 2050, so solutions for decarbonizing clinker production must be found. Therefore the Seeker are looking for new pathways to intermediates from raw materials without CO2 emissions.
Ideally, the solution should:
- Enable a CO2 free pathway to either CaO or Ca(OH)2 as intermediate materials, from calcium-oxide rich raw materials
- Produce clinker (or cementitious binder of equivalent reactivity)
- Energy cost no greater than current kiln benchmark (300 KCal/Kg + 40kWh/ton electrical)
- Be deployable to existing cement plants as well as new installations
Submissions to this Challenge must be received by 7 p.m. EET, Feb. 15, 2024.
Source: Herox