Fueling Sustainability: A Cost-Benefit Analysis of RDF and Sewage Sludge as Alternative Fuels in Cement Production

Abstract

With a substantial market share in the global cement industry, India ranks as the second-largest producer of cement. Cement is made by extracting and processing raw materials like shale, clay, and limestone, which are then heated to high temperatures in a kiln to create clinker. With the cement industry responsible for about 8% of all anthropogenic CO2 emissions, it is one of the largest contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions. Fuels are essential to the production of cement because they supply the heat required to burn the kilns, which turns raw materials into clinker, the main component of cement. Fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas have been used traditionally, but to lower energy costs and their negative effects on the environment, there is a growing trend toward alternative fuels, such as waste materials. Cement producers in many nations are already fuel switching from coal to alternative fuels. The cement industry combines material recycling and energy recovery to use waste as alternative fuels. Using Cost-Benefit Analysis, this study examines the use of Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) from Municipal Solid Waste and treated Sewage Sludge (SS) as an alternative fuel for coal in cement production. Although both RDF and SS are more cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternatives to coal, this study emphasizes that RDF is a more sustainable option.