Current clay calcination processes have gained momentum in recent years.
With FLSmidth’s existing flash calciner system, cement producers are able to produce highly reactive clays that replace 30% - 40% of the limestone-based clinker, resulting in a huge reduction in CO₂ emission. By electrifying the clay calcination process preferably using renewable sources and thereby eliminating the use of fossil fuels, the ECoClay partnership expects to further reduce emissions up to a total of 50% reduction per ton of cement produced. Furthermore, electrification enables better temperature control, and thus more uniformed material activation and higher end-product quality.
To further decarbonise the cement industry, FLSmidth and a series of leading industry experts have formed a partnership called ECoClay™. To reduce CO2 emissions from cement production by up to 50%, the ECoClay partners will develop and commercialise the technology needed to replace fossil fuels in clay calcination by fully electrifying the process.
The use of calcined clay as a Supplementary Cementitious Material (SCM) is essential in drastically reducing the massive environmental footprint from conventional cement production, which today accounts for approximately 7-8% of the world’s CO2 emission.
Based on the shared research and testing on clay activation, electric heat generation and storage, and grid integration, the ECoClay partnership will build a pilot plant at one of FLSmidth’s R&D Centers located in Denmark. The consortium seeks to demonstrate how the ECoClay solution is competitive in terms of better process control, greater efficiency, lower capital investment and higher end-product quality.
Based on the shared research and testing on clay activation, electric heat generation and storage, and grid integration, the ECoClay partnership will build a pilot plant at one of FLSmidth’s R&D Centers located in Denmark. The consortium seeks to demonstrate how the ECoClay solution is competitive in terms of better process control, greater efficiency, lower capital investment and higher end-product quality.
According to the project plan, the ECoClay partners expect to commence construction of the first full-scale electric clay calcination installation by mid 2026.
Unlocking value with ECoClay™
TIMELINE
START
01.Jan.2022
END
30.Jun.2026
Funding remark:
This project is partially funded by the Danish Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program (EUDP) under the Danish Energy Agency, Project Agreement No. 64021-7009.
ECoClay will pilot a new-to-the-world energy and process technology that enables the direct use of electrical energy for the clay activation process, at temperatures range from 700 to 900 °C depending on the clay properties. This demonstration comprises the development and operation of a pilot plant with a clay throughput of 50 to 100 kilograms per hour as the first step towards commercialization. The pilot plant will be used to validate feasibility and viability of the ECoClayTM solution through study of different process configurations and simulation of grid integration with renewables.
It is expected to obtain a fully integrated process, new knowledge, reliable design tools, a complete technical layout, and a full techno-economic report. This information will pave the way for the first large-scale industrial unit and accelerate the decarbonization in the cement sector.
More information is coming soon.
PHD PROJECTS
Academic research
Project 1
Process calculation, CFD model based on measurements on pilot
This PhD project is running in close related to research activities conducted at the Danish Technological Institute (DTI). There are three main research objectives in this PhD project:
To understand the calciner system layout and recycling influence on energy efficiency and provide recommendations for an efficient system layout.
To develop a model that provide an understanding of the interaction of flow, clay kinetics and calciner layout on the obtained conversion and thereby also provide a tool that can be used for scaling up the calciner reactor.
To improve the understanding of the calcination reactor and evaluate the CFD model calculations, detailed local reactor measurements will be done.
Project 2
Integration of clay calciner with renewable energy resources
Innovative electrification of the clay calcination process holds promises of a huge unexploited pool of flexible electricity consumption as well as emission reduction. The main objective of the ECoClay™ PhD project is to demonstrate how data-driven modelling, grid integration simulations, and optimal dispatch strategies can enhance demand-side flexibility using an industrial process hybridized with energy storage. The following PhD activities and outcomes are anticipated:
Electricity consumption profiling of ECoClay pilot plant to validate the electric metric of mass and energy balances.
Grid integration-oriented modelling, optimal sizing, and optimal placing of distributed energy resources (e.g. wind and solar power) and key components including heat storage according to the load profile of the electric clay calcination, its geographic location and its key equipment operation characteristics based on the wealth of data that can be collected at all levels (e.g. sensors/SCADA) of ECoClay system.
Simulation of grid integration for the selected use cases for example, geographic locations with high penetration of wind power and solar PV; heat storage hybridization with battery electric storage systems, etc.
Developing smart grid-oriented optimal dispatch and control strategies to support wind/solar power integration and stable & reliable operation of the ECoClay system to maximize its demand-side flexibility considering among others machine-learning based multi-objective optimization with cost-effective, CO2 reduction and value-added grid services.
Exploring and facilitating the replicability and scalability of power-to-heat solutions in the ECoClay system to harvest demand-side flexibility, economic and environmental benefit.
Project 3
Digital Twin modelling for operations and model predictive control
The objective of this research is to establish methods for advanced and robust model predictive control. The models must be able to assimilate information from sensors related to the process in near real-time. We will aim at constructing models which are able to take advantage of combining information from first principles with information in data. This research will focus on identifying digital twin models for process control and decision making under uncertainty. The digital twin models will be formulated as continuous- discrete time stochastic state space models. This family of models allow for a real-time estimation of important process parameters that are not directly measured or measurable.
The dynamics of the models are described by a set of stochastic differential equations, and this formulation enables a possibility for combining information from chemistry and physics with information embedded in measured data and signals. This type of digital twin models will be formulated in a way which allows for auto-tuning of the most important model parameters. It is well-know that this type of models is superior for advanced model predictive control. The formulation also allows for embedded forecasting of the relevant disturbances, and recent applications of this methodology has led to significant improvements of the performance of the controllers. The result on the response will be used by the grid integration project.
CONTACT
Get in touch with the ECoClay project coordinator
For more information about the project, you can get in touch with us via the contact methods on the right.
FLSmidth Cement
Vigerslev Allé 77, 2500, Valby, Copenhagen, Denmark
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