Cement Manufacturers Association (CMA)

60 Reducing the manufacturing cost of cement & increasing the profitability of cement mill by using Pond-ash instead of Fly Ash KK Sharma, Girdhar Gopal Mishra & Ketan Goel Invotech Industrial Solutions Private Limited 08 Abstract Setting up the most advanced cement manufacturing facility does not, on its own, guarantees profitable operations. In order to ensure its profitability and make it maximum cost efficient, cement manufacturing facility constantly requires sound operational practices besides advanced technological design. All the stakeholders are striving hard to ensure best operational practices but this approach is a continuous exercise. Undoubtedly, Cement Industries are facing couple of challenges. But other than saving costs, we have to be mindful about being energy efficient and using a robust and reliable solution to ensure best operational practices in the cement plants. To offset the challenges in the area of energy management and ensure energy efficiency in the cement industry, the Companies are employing cutting edge technology solutions and also emphasizing on, what's wrong or what kind of improvement can be done with production/operations to increase profitability. Concrete is the second most consumed substance on Earth after water. Cement production is expected to rise to 3.7- 4.4 billion tons by 2050. The production of cement releases greenhouse gas emissions both directly and indirectly and another major problem is dumping of fly ash and pond ash. Coal ash represents a major environmental problem. In India, every year 340 million tons of fly ash is produced. The prevalent practice is to dump fly ash and pond ash on wastelands, and this has lain to waste thousands of hectares all over the country. These sites are not lined and it leads to seepage, contaminating groundwater and soil. It lowers soil fertility and contaminates surface and ground water as it can leach into the subsoil. When fly ash gets into the natural draining system, it results in siltation and clogs the system. It also reduces the pH balance and portability of water. Introduction Coal is the most easily available fuel for power generation in India, and ever-growing demand of electricity will continue to make use of this source of energy. Thermal power stations generally use coal of lower grades with ash content as high as 30 to 50 percent.