Cement Industry Develops Domestic Coal Ash Utilization Technology... "Practical Application Imminent"

Final Outcome Review Meeting Held in Samcheok on the 14th-15th

The use of domestically produced coal ash in the cement industry is expected to expand.

According to the Korea Cement Association on the 15th, the cement industry gathered in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, for two days starting the day before to hold a final performance review meeting for the domestic coal ash research and development project.

On the 14th, cement industry representatives gathered in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, to hold the final performance review meeting for the domestic coal ash research and development project. Participants are taking a commemorative photo.
[Photo by Korea Cement Association]

This project was carried out in preparation for the government's waste import restriction policy and the future ban on importing overseas coal ash. It received research and development (R&D) support from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. A representative from the Korea Cement Association explained, “Based on on-site verification using cement manufacturing facilities, we are on the verge of commercializing technology to utilize unused coal ash emitted from domestic thermal power plants as raw materials for cement.”

Cement is made by mixing natural minerals such as limestone, iron ore, silica, and clay in certain proportions, then undergoing an ultra-high temperature calcination process at over 1450 degrees Celsius. Since the 2000s, the cement industry has replaced some natural mineral auxiliary materials, except for the main raw material limestone, with certain wastes that have matching chemical components. The usage is gradually increasing to protect mineral resources and preserve the environment.

In the case of coal ash, it is substituted because its chemical components match those of clay. Until now, to resolve the shortage of domestic clay raw materials, the insufficient amount was imported and used. However, due to the government's waste import restriction policy, the import of coal ash will be completely banned starting next year.

Despite this situation, most of the coal ash generated from domestic thermal power plants is used as a blended material replacing cement in ready-mixed concrete plants, which limits its usage. A Korea Cement Association official emphasized, “To produce cement stably, it is urgent to develop domestic resources that can replace imported coal ash.”

The R&D project to utilize domestic coal ash as cement raw material has been carried out over a total of 45 months from July 2020 to this month. Major cement manufacturers such as Sampyo Cement, Ssangyong C&E, and Asia Cement, research institutes including the Korea Ceramic Technology Institute, Korea Conformity Laboratories, Limestone New Materials Research Institute, Yeongwol Industrial Promotion Agency, and academia such as Kongju National University and Gunsan University jointly participated in this project. The project proceeded step-by-step from basic research to demonstration research for equipment and process technology development.

In the final research performance review, technologies developed for utilizing domestic landfill coal ash, bottom ash, dry coal ash, and chlorine-containing recycled resources?byproducts of thermal power plants that had not been used as cement raw materials?were confirmed. Discussions for commercialization promotion were also held.

A representative from the Korea Cement Association said, “If the developed technology is commercialized, more than approximately 900,000 tons of domestic landfill coal ash that had not been recycled so far can be recycled annually, securing a stable supply base of clay raw materials domestically for the cement industry. Domestic power plants are also expected to greatly contribute to reducing landfill construction and operation costs and resolving environmental pollution concerns related to coal ash landfilling.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.