Recent Progress in Green Cement Technology Utilizing Low-Carbon Emission Fuels and Raw Materials: A Review

The cement industry is facing numerous challenges in the 21st century due to depleting natural fuel resources, shortage of raw materials, exponentially increasing cement demand and climate linked environmental concerns. Every tonne of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) produced releases an equivalent amount of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. In this regard, cement manufactured from locally available minerals and industrial wastes that can be blended with OPC as substitute, or full replacement with novel clinkers to reduce the energy requirements is strongly desirable. Reduction in energy consumption and carbon emissions during cement manufacturing can be achieved by introducing alternative cements. The potential of alternative cements as a replacement of conventional OPC can only be fully realized through detailed investigation of binder properties with modern technologies. Seven prominent alternative cement types are considered in this study and their current position compared to OPC has been discussed. The study provides a comprehensive analysis of options for future cements, and an up-to-date summary of the different alternative fuels and binders that can be used in cement production to mitigate carbon dioxide emissions. In addition, the practicalities and benefits of producing the low-cost materials to meet the increasing cement demand are discussed.

[1]  Chai Jaturapitakkul,et al.  NaOH-activated ground fly ash geopolymer cured at ambient temperature , 2011 .

[2]  Uwe Schweike,et al.  Celitement - a sustainable prospect for the cement industry , 2010 .

[3]  Jose-Luis Galvez-Martos,et al.  An analysis of the use of life cycle assessment for waste co-incineration in cement kilns , 2014 .

[4]  H. Lee,et al.  Microstructural densification and CO2 uptake promoted by the carbonation curing of belite-rich Portland cement , 2016 .

[5]  K. Scrivener,et al.  Calcined clay limestone cements (LC3) , 2017, Cement and Concrete Research.

[6]  Ángel Palomo,et al.  Alkali-activated fly ash: Effect of thermal curing conditions on mechanical and microstructural development – Part II , 2007 .

[7]  B. Scheetz,et al.  Giga-scale disposal: a real frontier for ceramic research , 1999 .

[8]  Lei,et al.  Properties of Belite-Rich Portland Cement and Concrete in China , 2015 .

[9]  C. Shi,et al.  New cements for the 21st century: The pursuit of an alternative to Portland cement , 2011 .

[10]  H. Lee,et al.  A novel eco-friendly porous concrete fabricated with coal ash and geopolymeric binder: Heavy metal leaching characteristics and compressive strength , 2015 .

[11]  Carles M. Gasol,et al.  Implementation of best available techniques in cement manufacturing: a life-cycle assessment study , 2012 .

[12]  P. K. Mehta,et al.  Concrete: Microstructure, Properties, and Materials , 2005 .

[13]  D W Pennington,et al.  Life cycle assessment: Part 1: Framework, goal and scope definition, inventory analysis, and applications , 2004 .

[14]  Liang Zhang,et al.  Development of the use of sulfo- and ferroaluminate cements in China , 1999 .

[15]  S. Hellweg,et al.  Identifying improvement potentials in cement production with life cycle assessment. , 2010, Environmental science & technology.

[16]  G. Kakali,et al.  Thermal treatment of kaolin : the effect of mineralogy on the pozzolanic activity , 2001 .

[17]  Ali Hasanbeigi,et al.  Analysis of energy-efficiency opportunities for the cement industry in Shandong Province, China: A case study of 16 cement plants , 2010 .

[18]  Hamidah Mohd Saman,et al.  Quarry dust fine powder as substitute for ordinary portland cement in concrete mix , 2014 .

[19]  Guillaume Habert,et al.  Cement Production Technology Improvement Compared to Factor 4 Objectives , 2010 .

[20]  Mohammed S. Imbabi,et al.  Trends and developments in green cement and concrete technology , 2012 .

[21]  B. von Bahr,et al.  Experiences of environmental performance evaluation in the cement industry. Data quality of environmental performance indicators as a limiting factor for Benchmarking and Rating , 2003 .

[22]  Fernando Pacheco-Torgal,et al.  Alkali-activated binders: A review: Part 1. Historical background, terminology, reaction mechanisms and hydration products , 2008 .

[23]  Michael N. Fardis,et al.  Hydration and Carbonation of Pozzolanic Cements , 1992 .

[24]  Elza Bontempi,et al.  A New Approach to Evaluate the Sustainability of Raw Materials Substitution , 2017 .

[25]  Rubina Chaudhary,et al.  Mechanism of geopolymerization and factors influencing its development: a review , 2007 .

[26]  J. Phair.  Green chemistry for sustainable cement production and use , 2006 .

[27]  Alaa M. Rashad,et al.  The effect of activator concentration on the residual strength of alkali-activated fly ash pastes subjected to thermal load , 2011 .

[28]  C. Chen,et al.  Environmental impact of cement production: detail of the different processes and cement plant variability evaluation , 2010 .

[29]  J. Sanjayan,et al.  Green house gas emissions due to concrete manufacture , 2007 .

[30]  Ernst Worrell,et al.  Emission Reduction of Greenhouse Gases from the Cement Industry , 2003 .

[31]  T. Sui,et al.  A COMPARISON OF HBC & MHC MASSIVE CONCRETES FOR THREE GORGES PROJECT IN CHINA , 2006 .

[32]  John E. Oakey,et al.  CO2 Capture Technologies for Cement Industry , 2009 .

[33]  Hendrik G. van Oss,et al.  Cement Manufacture and the Environment Part II: Environmental Challenges and Opportunities , 2003 .

[34]  Neil B. Milestone,et al.  Hydration and properties of sodium sulfate activated slag , 2013 .

[35]  F. Glasser,et al.  Hydration of calcium sulphoaluminate cements , 1996 .

[36]  J. Ston,et al.  Impacting factors and properties of limestone calcined clay cements (LC3) , 2019, Green Materials.

[37]  Klaus S. Lackner,et al.  A Guide to CO2 Sequestration , 2003, Science.

[38]  Mohammad Shekarchi,et al.  Environmental assessment of green concrete containing natural zeolite on the global warming index in marine environments , 2014 .

[39]  Guillaume Habert,et al.  Clay content of argillites: Influence on cement based mortars , 2009 .

[40]  Y. Xi,et al.  ASR Potentials of Glass Aggregates in Water-Glass Activated Fly Ash and Portland Cement Mortars , 2003 .

[41]  P. K. Mehta.  Mechanism of expansion associated with ettringite formation , 1973 .

[42]  Guillaume Habert,et al.  Assessing the environmental impact of conventional and ‘green’ cement production , 2014 .

[43]  Abir Al-Tabbaa,et al.  Influence of carbonation on the properties of reactive magnesia cement-based pressed masonry units , 2008 .

[44]  Alejandra Tironi,et al.  Assessment of pozzolanic activity of different calcined clays , 2013 .

[45]  F. Collins,et al.  Carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2-e) emissions: A comparison between geopolymer and OPC cement concrete , 2013 .

[46]  Gerasimos Lyberatos,et al.  Life cycle assessment of the use of alternative fuels in cement kilns: A case study. , 2017, Journal of environmental management.

[47]  N. Garg,et al.  Thermal Activation of a Pure Montmorillonite Clay and Its Reactivity in Cementitious Systems , 2014 .

[48]  P. Maravelaki-Kalaitzaki,et al.  Sorel's cement mortars: Decay susceptibility and effect on Pentelic marble , 1999 .

[49]  Elza Bontempi,et al.  A new approach for evaluating the sustainability of raw materials substitution based on embodied energy and the CO2 footprint , 2017 .

[50]  P. Stemmermann,et al.  Celitement® – A new sustainable hydraulic binder based on calcium hydrosilicates , 2010 .

[51]  Antonio Aguado,et al.  Comparative analysis of available life cycle inventories of cement in the EU , 2004 .

[52]  John Kline,et al.  Cement and carbon emissions , 2014 .

[53]  Christopher R. Cheeseman,et al.  Comparison of test methods to assess pozzolanic activity , 2010 .

[55]  Antonio Aguado,et al.  Comparative analysis of the life cycle impact assessment of available cement inventories in the EU , 2007 .

[56]  Karen L. Scrivener,et al.  Options for the future of cement , 2014 .

[57]  Longtu Li,et al.  A review: The comparison between alkali-activated slag (Si + Ca) and metakaolin (Si + Al) cements , 2010 .

[58]  H. Lee,et al.  Fresh and hardened properties of alkali-activated fly ash/slag pastes with superplasticizers , 2014 .

[59]  R. A. Smith,et al.  THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY MASS BALANCE: RESOURCE USE, WASTES AND EMISSIONS , 2002 .

[60]  Alaa M. Rashad,et al.  An exploratory study on high-volume fly ash concrete incorporating silica fume subjected to thermal loads , 2015 .

[61]  K. Scrivener,et al.  Eco-efficient cements: Potential economically viable solutions for a low-CO2 cement-based materials industry , 2018, Cement and Concrete Research.

[62]  Donald E. Macphee,et al.  A physico-chemical basis for novel cementitious binders , 2011 .

[63]  D. Roy,et al.  The potential of fly ash for cement manufacture , 1993 .

[64]  N. Roussel,et al.  An environmental evaluation of geopolymer based concrete production: reviewing current research trends , 2011 .

[65]  Enda Crossin,et al.  The greenhouse gas implications of using ground granulated blast furnace slag as a cement substitute , 2015 .

[66]  H. Lee,et al.  Unlocking the role of MgO in the carbonation of alkali-activated slag cement , 2018 .

[67]  Aurélie Favier,et al.  Assessing the environmental and economic potential of Limestone Calcined Clay Cement in Cuba , 2016 .

[68]  Francisca Puertas,et al.  The alkali–silica reaction in alkali-activated granulated slag mortars with reactive aggregate , 2002 .

[69]  John Bensted,et al.  Structure and Performance of Cements , 2001 .

[70]  D. Huntzinger,et al.  A life-cycle assessment of Portland cement manufacturing: comparing the traditional process with alternative technologies , 2009 .

[71]  Sarah C. Taylor-Lange,et al.  Calcined kaolinite–bentonite clay blends as supplementary cementitious materials , 2015 .

[72]  Pavel Rovnaník,et al.  Effect of curing temperature on the development of hard structure of metakaolin-based geopolymer , 2010 .

[73]  G Finnveden,et al.  Life cycle assessment part 2: current impact assessment practice. , 2004, Environment international.

[74]  Tongbo Sui,et al.  Alternative cement clinkers , 2017, Cement and Concrete Research.

[75]  J. G. Sanjayan,et al.  Chapter 1 – Greenhouse Gas Emissions Due to Concrete Manufacture , 2017 .

[76]  Marta Schuhmacher,et al.  Partial replacement of fossil fuel in a cement plant: risk assessment for the population living in the neighborhood. , 2010, The Science of the total environment.

[77]  Martin Schneider,et al.  Sustainable cement production—present and future , 2011 .

[78]  Anja Buchwald,et al.  Life-cycle analysis of geopolymers , 2009 .

[79]  Keun-Hyeok Yang,et al.  Effect of supplementary cementitious materials on reduction of CO2 emissions from concrete , 2015 .

[80]  Guillaume Habert,et al.  Effects of the Secondary Minerals of the Natural Pozzolans on their Pozzolanic Activity , 2008 .

[81]  F. Glasser,et al.  High-performance cement matrices based on calcium sulfoaluminate–belite compositions , 2001 .

[82]  J. Provis.  Geopolymers and other alkali activated materials: why, how, and what? , 2014 .

[83]  A. K. Jain,et al.  Sustainability of Construction Materials , 2010 .

[84]  Karen Scrivener,et al.  Cement substitution by a combination of metakaolin and limestone , 2012 .

[85]  E. Gartner.  Industrially interesting approaches to “low-CO2” cements ☆ , 2004 .

[86]  P. Van den Heede,et al.  Environmental impact and life cycle assessment (LCA) of traditional and ‘green’ concretes: Literature review and theoretical calculations , 2012 .

[87]  Kenneth J. D. MacKenzie,et al.  Thermal behaviour of inorganic geopolymers and composites derived from sodium polysialate , 2003 .

[88]  Peter Lund,et al.  Impacts of EU carbon emission trade directive on energy-intensive industries -- Indicative micro-economic analyses , 2007 .

[89]  Anne-Marie Tillman,et al.  The design and building of a lifecycle-based process model for simulating environmental performance, product performance and cost in cement manufacturing , 2004 .

[90]  Changling He,et al.  Thermal stability and pozzolanic activity of raw and calcined mixed-layer mica/smectite , 2000 .

[91]  Duncan Herfort,et al.  Sustainable Development and Climate Change Initiatives , 2008 .

[92]  Della M. Roy,et al.  Sulfoaluminate-belite cement from low-calcium fly ash and sulfur-rich and other industrial by-products , 1999 .

[93]  Karen Scrivener,et al.  The origin of the pozzolanic activity of calcined clay minerals: A comparison between kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite , 2011 .

[94]  V. Sirivivatnanon,et al.  Kinetics of geopolymerization: Role of Al2O3 and SiO2 , 2007 .

[95]  J. Labrincha,et al.  Life cycle assessment of the production of cement: A Brazilian case study , 2016 .

[96]  H. Hirao,et al.  A review of alternative approaches to the reduction of CO2 emissions associated with the manufacture of the binder phase in concrete , 2015 .