Ireland’s Mannok Cement has revealed that since 2017 it has saved 59mkWh of energy at its cement manufacturing facility through a multi-million-euro investment in energy-saving projects, while adhering to and retaining the energy management standard, ISO 50001. The saving is equivalent to the annual electrical energy usage of 14,047 Irish households, each consuming 4200kWh of electricity.
The company began its journey of improving energy efficiency in 2017 while preparing for ISO 50001 Energy Management Standard, which it achieved a year later. To continually reduce its energy consumption and improve efficiency, the company is measuring all significant energy users across the cement plant and digitally displaying all data via an energy management software to provide an understanding of energy consumption levels throughout the 35ha manufacturing site.
Mannok was able to exceed its target in 2022 with almost 8mkWh of energy saved through nine key thermal and electrical energy improvement projects. These included repairing false air leaks in key areas, optimising raw materials and investing in technology upgrades. And there are further energy-saving projects planned for the near future.
One of these projects is a new satellite burner that will introduce more SRF to the kiln and enable a further 25 per cent of coal substitution. This project will be followed by the installation of a Jetflex burner that will allow Mannok to use hydrogen, oxygen or biogas, increasing throughput of SRF to 65 per cent while significantly reducing coal usage.
Other initiatives include upgrading the remaining grate cooler fans, which has the potential to save over 800,000kWh of energy, and investment in a new cement dryer that has the potential to save 60,000kWh of energy as well as improve process control and air quality.
Another key project in the pipeline is the waste heat recovery initiative that will displace a substantial 5-6MW of grid electricity while a further investment of around GBP5m (US$6.4m) will be made in 2024 in the refurbishment of the cooler which Mannok expects to dramatically improve energy efficiency.
