Analysis of the Environmental and Economic Effect of the Co-Processing of Waste in the Cement Industry in Korea

Dowan Kim () and Chaegun Phae
Additional contact information
Dowan Kim: Department of Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 01811, Republic of Korea
Chaegun Phae: Department of Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 01811, Republic of Korea

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 23, 1-8

Abstract: Recently, the amount of waste generated in Korea has been increasing, and there have been difficulties disposing of it. As an energy-intensive and raw-materials-oriented industry, the cement industry is facing challenges including overcoming the climate crisis and achieving carbon neutrality. Co-processing was suggested as a solution, but the environmental effects of this have not been specifically studied in Korea. In this study, the effects of using alternative resources (limestone, silica stone, iron ore, and gypsum) and fuel on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the cement industry in Korea were analyzed. GHGs generated from mineral mining were compared to GHGs of alternative resources. The reduction in GHGs by using alternative fuel was calculated via the amount of heat from waste instead of that from bituminous coal. Co-processing can reduce approximately 106.9 kg of CO 2 in one ton of cement. The cost savings were estimated to be about USD 3815 million. In addition, the lifespans of landfills would be extended by 7.55 years.

Keywords: cement; co-processing; waste; greenhouse gas; alternative effect (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/23/15820/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/23/15820/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:23:p:15820-:d:986513

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().