Background to the Study

The cement industry is a major source of industrial greenhouse gas emissions and accounts for around 5 % of global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. The cement industry has been reducing its energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions per tonne of cement through a variety of different techniques aimed at reducing costs and satisfying other environmental targets. These techniques have already been exploited to a significant extent and they will only be able to partly contribute to the emission reductions required to meet global climate change goals. The remaining fraction of the reduction will require the application of CCS.

IEAGHG published a techno-economic study on capture of CO₂ in the cement industry in 2008[1]. Since that time the level of interest in the application of CCS to cement production has increased but there is still relatively little practical development work being carried out. The main objective of this study is to review greenhouse gas emissions in the cement industry and provide a survey of the state of development and barriers to the deployment of CCS in this industry.

This study was undertaken for IEAGHG by the European Cement Research Academy (ECRA) in Germany, at the request of and with financial support from the Global CCS Institute (GCCSI).

Key Messages

• Established techniques can be used to reduce CO₂ emissions from cement production, including increased energy efficiency, use of alternative raw materials and fuels and reducing the clinker:cement ratio. However, CCS will be needed to achieve deep emission reductions.

• The preferred techniques for capturing CO₂ in cement plants are oxyfuel and post combustion capture. Pre-combustion capture is at a disadvantage because it is unable to capture the large amount of CO₂ produced by carbonate decomposition.

• Oxyfuel technology is in general expected to have a lower energy consumption and costs than post combustion capture using liquid solvent scrubbing.

• Some pilot plant projects for post combustion capture at cement plants are underway but oxyfuel technology for cement plants is still at the laboratory stage of development.

• A survey of the cement industry showed that most of the respondents think that CCS is relevant to them and they are aware of research projects, and half are involved in CCS activities. More than half of the respondents would contribute financially to CCS research but only a third would be willing to contribute to pilot or demonstration plants due to high costs.

• With the current legal and economic conditions CCS would impair the competiveness of cement production, which will inhibit development and application of CCS in the cement sector.