Co-processing of RDF in Cement Plants

Abstract

Effective solid waste management in India is becoming a major need due to high pace of urbanization and rapid industrialization posing major challenges. Co-processing of refuse-derived fuel (RDF) presents to the urban local bodies an option for environmentally sound management for non-biodegradable, non-recyclable organic waste as well as opportunity to reduce emissions due to fossil fuels used in cement kilns. With about 68.8 Million Tonnes of MSW generated annually in the country and 13.7 Million Tonnes available for co-processing, the potential for co-processing looks positive. The government has also realized the potential and introduced policies to encourage the development of co-processing. However ground realization of this potential still remains in the nascent stage with Thermal Substitution Rate (TSR) reported at less than 1%. Municipal Solid waste is still considered a burden and a cost for the municipalities which spend large portions of its budget to transport waste to landfills. The quality of RDF produced has had an impact on the levels of utilization in the cement kilns and the associated environment impact. Currently, RDF due to the lack of quality consideration, is finding little or no its use in the cement plants. The informal sector could play a key role in assisting to manage collection of wet and dry waste and manning Material Recycling Facilities. However, the integration of this sector formally into the solid waste management system has been a hiccup. The paper presents analysis of factors leading to low levels of co-processing in cement plants despite its advantages, national and regional policies, economic feasibility, industry perspective and proposes menu of business models for turning co-processing into a sustainable business case.