Cement makers look at alternative sources of energy

ERJ staff report (DS)

Solihull, UK -- Currently tyres are 31 percent more expensive than other alternative fuels available for use in cement kilns - measured in terms of cost per kilojoule. Nevertheless, UK cement producer Lafarge intends to continue using tyres in its kilns.

The figure is important because large numbers of tyres are disposed of in cement kilns across Europe. In the UK around 37 percent of end of life tyres are currently used in energy recovery; the vast majority of these go to cement production. Other countries use even rgeater percentages.

Tim Stott, business development manager at Sapphire Energy Recovery Ltd, told delegates to the annual meeting of the UK's Tyre Recovery Association that meat and bone meal is a more attractive fuel than scrap tyres, even though the calorific content of those biological alternative fuels is much lower than that of tyres.

Stott said Sapphire and its parent, Lafarge Cement, will continue to use tyres in the immediate future, as together Lafarge and Sapphire have invested £15 million in tyre disposal and recovery systems.

Longer term, however, Stott noted that the price of alternative fuels were likely to converge over time, so switching from one fuel to another would not be a good long term strategy. however, he also noted that as carbon dioxide trading becomes dominant in Europe, the low biomass content of tyres (around 27 percent) will count against it in competition with other alternative fuels.

Those in the supply chain for end-of-life tyres wlil need to ensure their fuel is cost-competitive with other alternative fuels, said Stott.