Cement Production Technology Principles and Practice

Anjan Kumar Chatterjee

Cement Production Technology Principles and Practice

Cement Production Technology Principles and Practice

Anjan Kumar Chatterjee

CRC Press Taylor & Francis Group 6000 Broken Sound Parkway NW, Suite 300 Boca Raton, FL 33487-2742 First issued in paperback 2020 © 2018 by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC CRC Press is an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, an Informa business No claim to original U.S. Government works ISBN-13: 978-0-367-57168-9 (pbk) ISBN-13: 978-1-138-57066-5 (hbk) This book contains information obtained from authentic and highly regarded sources. Reasonable efforts have been made to publish reliable data and information, but the author and publisher cannot assume responsibility for the validity of all materials or the consequences of their use. The authors and publishers have attempted to trace the copyright holders of all material reproduced in this publication and apologize to copyright holders if permission to publish in this form has not been obtained. If any copyright material has not been acknowledged please write and let us know so we may rectify in any future reprint. Except as permitted under U.S. Copyright Law, no part of this book may be reprinted, reproduced, transmitted, or utilized in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying, microfilming, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without written permission from the publishers. For permission to photocopy or use material electronically from this work, please access www.copyright.com (http://www .copyright.com/) or contact the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc. (CCC), 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, 978-7508400. CCC is a not-for-profit organization that provides licenses and registration for a variety of users. For organizations that have been granted a photocopy license by the CCC, a separate system of payment has been arranged. Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. Visit the Taylor & Francis Web site at http://www.taylorandfrancis.com and the CRC Press Web site at http://www.crcpress.com

To my parents, Sibani and Phani Bhusan, who are no more, but who, I have a strange feeling, are protecting me and my family from an unknown remoteness.

Contents

xiii xvii xix

Preface Author Notation 1 Basics of mineral resources for cement production

1

1.1 Preamble 1.2 Characterization of minerals and rocks 1.3 Nature of limestone occurrence 1.4 Assessment of limestone deposits 1.5 Mineral composition and quality of limestone 1.6 Limestone mining 1.7 Quarry design and operational optimization 1.8 Argillaceous materials 1.9 Corrective materials 1.10 Natural gypsum 1.11 Influence of raw materials on unit operations 1.12 Summary References

1 2 6 8 18 24 27 29 32 33 36 37 39

2 Raw mix proportioning, processing, and burnability assessment 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6

Preamble Stoichiometric requirements in raw mix computation Raw mix computation Preparation process for raw mix Burnability features of raw meal Use of mineralizers

41 41 41 48 53 63 68 vii

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2.7 Summary References 3 Fuels commonly in use for clinker production 3.1 Preamble 3.2 Characteristics of fuels 3.3 Coal resources of the world 3.4 Basic chemistry and physics of combustion 3.5 Coal preparation and firing 3.6 Relation of process parameters with combustion 3.7 Petcoke as a substitute fuel 3.8 Summary References 4 Alternative fuels and raw materials 4.1 Preamble 4.2 Broad classification 4.3 Feasibility of an AFR project 4.4 Inventory and material characteristics 4.5 Systematic quality assessment 4.6 Co-processing of alternative fuels 4.7 Systemic requirements for using alternative fuels 4.8 Gasification technology 4.9 Alternative raw materials 4.10 Environmental aspects 4.11 Summary References 5 Pyroprocessing and clinker cooling 5.1 Preamble 5.2 Clinker formation process 5.3 Preheater-precalciner systems 5.4 Rotary kiln systems 5.5 Kiln burners and combustion 5.6 Clinker coolers 5.7 Volatiles cycle in preheater-precalciner kiln systems 5.8 Refractory lining materials in the kiln system 5.9 Energy consumption and kiln emissions 5.10 Kiln control strategies 5.11 Summary References

69 70 73 73 74 81 83 87 92 96 100 101 103 103 104 107 109 118 121 124 133 135 136 138 139 141 141 141 146 152 155 157 161 162 167 169 171 172

Contents

6 Clinker grinding and cement making 6.1 Preamble 6.2 Clinker characteristics 6.3 Clinker grinding systems 6.4 Energy conservation and material characteristics 6.5 Grinding aids in cement manufacture 6.6 Storage, dispatch, and bagging of cement 6.7 Summary References 7 Composition and properties of Portland cements 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6

Preamble Basic grades and varieties Characteristics of Portland cements Phase-modified Portland cements Blended Portland cements Characterization of cements and practical implications of properties 7.7 Overview of the hydration reactions 7.8 Cement for durable concrete 7.9 Summary References 8 Advances in plant-based quality control practice 8.1 Preamble 8.2 Sampling guidelines 8.3 Sampling stations in cement plants 8.4 Computer-aided run-of-mine limestone quality control 8.5 Preblending operation 8.6 Raw mix control 8.7 Kiln operation monitoring 8.8 Cement grinding process 8.9 X-ray diffractometry for phase analysis 8.10 Online quality control in cement plants 8.11 Flue gas analysis 8.12 Process measurements 8.13 Total process control system 8.14 Summary References

ix

175 175 176 185 200 205 209 211 212 213 213 214 219 225 226 230 235 245 248 249 251 251 252 254 256 258 260 263 264 265 267 272 280 284 285 286

x

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9 Environmental mitigation and pollution control technologies 9.1 9.2

287

Preamble Pollutants emitted into the atmosphere during manufacture of cement 9.3 Generation and broad characteristics of dust 9.4 Sulfur dioxide emissions 9.5 Nitrogen oxide emissions 9.6 Noise pollution 9.7 Selected monitoring techniques 9.8 Current environmental outlook 9.9 Summary References

288 293 313 315 319 321 323 324 325

10 Trends of research and development in cement manufacture and application

327

10.1 Preamble 10.2 Sustaining technologies in the growth of the cement industry 10.3 Status of potentially disruptive pyroprocessing technologies 10.4 Portland cement derivatives with niche application potential 10.5 Complex building products formulation with CAC 10.6 Research thrusts towards low-carbon cement industry 10.7 Technology options for converting Co2 into fuel products 10.8 Low-carbon cements and concretes 10.9 Nanotechnology in cement research 10.10 Non-hydraulic cements 10.11 Summary References

287

327 328 331 336 352 354 358 359 366 367 368 369

11 Global and regional growth trends in cement production 371 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4

Preamble Capacity and production growth perspectives National economy versus cement consumption Change drivers of production and application of cement

371 372 377 379

Contents

11.5 Future design of cement plants 11.6 Growth of the Indian cement industry: a case study References

xi

382 384 391

12 Epilogue

393

Index

397

Preface

This book is borne out of my very long and intimate association with the science and technology of cement production. In the early 1960s, when I visited what was then the Soviet Union (now the Russian Federation) to study, I got the flavor of cement production technology from my teachers, who offered interesting lessons in materials science, phase equilibrium, minerals processing, and the petrography of synthetic materials with industrial relevance and illustrations. The production of cement became more fascinating to me when I was exposed to various plants that included cement manufacturing units. For the first time, I stood in front of a gigantic kiln, 7 m in diameter and 230 m long, with a production capacity of only about 1000 tons per day of clinker by the wet process of manufacture prevalent in those days. Back in my own country, I had the opportunity of serving what was then the Cement Research Institute of India (now the National Council of Cement and Building Materials) and becoming a part of the changing canvas of the Indian cement industry, marked by the process transformation from wet to dry; from single-kiln plants to multiple dry preheater kilns operating in specific locations; the advent of kilns with a capacity of 1,000,000 tons or more through pre-calcination technology; from meagre off-line process control to a high level of instrumentation and computer-aided process control systems. Later, as Research Director of what was then the Associated Cement Companies Limited (now ACC Limited) I had the rare opportunity of integrating industrial research and development (R&D) with plant adoption and practices, transferring new product technologies and upgrading operating processes. Over roughly five decades I had innumerable occasions of organizing training and skill development programs for practising professionals and technicians, and delivering lectures and lessons to them. This book, in essence, is an updated compendium of what I taught in these classes and presented in the seminars and workshops.

xiii

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The question that may logically appear is why one should look for yet another book on this subject when there are several available. The simple answer is that the published books and compendia are focused on specific themes of chemistry, chemical engineering, plant and equipment design, project engineering, plant maintenance, and so on. If one has to understand the multiple facets of cement production technology as a beginner, one may have to browse through multiple publications. The present book is an attempt to compress, in one place, the essential information of a diverse nature required to be familiar with the wide subject of cement production technology. A reader, however, requires an adequate background in chemistry and chemical engineering for making the best use of this book, and it is expected to be most useful to those endeavouring to have a career in the cement industry, or those who have freshly entered this profession, or—for that matter—those practising engineers and scientists who intend to refresh their fundamentals in the subject without entering the classroom. Looking at the rapid growth and spread of the cement industry worldwide, I am all the more convinced that a textbook or a handbook of multidisciplinary nature—but comprehensible to young professionals with different academic backgrounds—is a need of the hour. World production of cement was more than 4.0 billion tons per annum in 2013, corresponding to about 600 kg per capita consumption of cement, which is, perhaps, higher than the per-capita food consumption of human beings. Further, this mass of cement is not used only as cement but produces cement-based building products and materials that amount to approximately seven times the quantity of cement produced. The consumption of such cement-based materials appears to be second only to mankind’s consumption of water. I refer to these material volumes only in order to demonstrate the magnitude of the cement industry that many of us serve. It is essential that we understand all the intricacies of the science and technology governing such a colossal manufacturing activity. This has been another compelling reason for me to author this book. I have been an ardent advocate of R&D in cement production and application. The cement industry, being a mature one, has always been dependent on sustaining technological developments, often borrowed from sister industries such as ceramics and electronics. Research on disruptive technologies has been rare and often stinted. Nevertheless, the Portland cement industry’s almost 200-year history has seen a large number of spectacular technological advances, which, I believe, should make up part of the knowledge of those participating in the industry’s growth. Hence, the more important developments of the past, and present trends of research, have been captured in this book to the extent a non-researcher should know. This book is organized in 11 chapters. The first two chapters are devoted to the winning and processing of raw materials. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 deal with fuels and clinker making. Chapters 6 and 7 delve into clinker grinding technology and characterizing different varieties of Portland cement, respectively. The overall quality control and environmental technology aspects have been elaborated in Chapters 8 and 9,

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respectively. The past and present trends of R&D have been concisely narrated in Chapter 10. The global and regional growth perspectives of the industry have been outlined in Chapter 11. It may be pertinent to mention that the book has drawn freely from previous literature as well as the author’s personal experience and prior publications. The more relevant ones are listed as references at the end of each chapter. I am grateful to the large number of friends and professional colleagues who have encouraged me to author this book. The list is too long to be presented, but I would be failing in my duties if I did not thank my erstwhile colleagues at Conmat Technologies Private Limited, Kolkata, for their unstinting support and assistance during the preparation of the initial version of the manuscript. I am also sincerely grateful to Professor Binay Dutta, an academician of great repute and former Chairman of the West Bengal Pollution Control Board in India, for having guided me in the last mile of the arduous task of making this book worthy of publishing. It would be a matter of great satisfaction if readers at large benefited from this book.

Civil Engineering

Cement Production Technology Cement Production Technology: Principles and Practice is an outcome of the author’s active professional involvement in research, manufacture and consultancy in the field of cement chemistry and process engineering. The primary aim is to provide a multidisciplinary handbook for the students who wish to have an overall grasp in cement production technology. Keeping all perspectives in mind, the author has attempted to cover the entire process spectrum of cement production, starting from extraction and winning of natural raw materials to the finished products including the environmental impacts and research trends. The book has an overtone of practice supported by the back-up principles. Key Features: • Explores the subject of cement production with an effective combination of materials science and technology along with good analysis of cement production sector • Provides all the unit processes of cement production with their back-up principles and practice in one volume • Includes back-up theoretical inputs to understand the practice • Discusses environmental management and sustainability issues as required to run a plant • Details process and product research trends of relevance to the industry