Co-processing is the use of

waste Waste (or wastes) are unwanted or unusable materials. Waste is any substance discarded after primary use, or is worthless, defective and of no use. A by-product, by contrast is a joint product of relatively minor economic value. A waste prod ...

as raw material, or as a source of energy, or both to replace natural mineral resources (material recycling) and fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum and gas (

energy recovery Energy recovery includes any technique or method of minimizing the input of energy to an overall system by the exchange of energy from one sub-system of the overall system with another. The energy can be in any form in either subsystem, but mos ...

) in industrial processes, mainly in energy intensive industries (EII) such as

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

, steel,

glass Glass is a non-crystalline, often transparent, amorphous solid that has widespread practical, technological, and decorative use in, for example, window panes, tableware, and optics. Glass is most often formed by rapid cooling ( quenching ...

, and power generation. Waste materials used for Co-processing are referred to as alternative fuels and raw materials (AFR).

Concept of Co-processing

Co-processing is a proven sustainable development concept that reduces demands on natural resources, reduces pollution and landfill space, thus contributing to reducing the

environmental footprint The ecological footprint is a method promoted by the Global Footprint Network to measure human demand on natural capital, i.e. the quantity of nature it takes to support people or an economy. It tracks this demand through an ecological accounti ...

. Co-processing is also based on the principles of

industrial ecology Industrial ecology (IE) is the study of material and energy flows through industrial systems. The global industrial economy can be modelled as a network of industrial processes that extract resources from the Earth and transform those resource ...

, which considers the best features of the flow of information, materials, and energy of biological ecosystems, with the aim of improving the exchange of these essential resources in the industrial world. image:Types of Co-processing.gif Figure 1: Types of Co-processing In summary, the benefits of Co-processing are: * to conserve natural (non-renewable) resources of energy and materials, * to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases in order to slow global warming and demonstrate a positive impact on integrated environmental indicators, such as the ecological footprint, * to reduce the environmental impacts of the extraction (mining or quarrying), transporting, and processing of raw materials, * to reduce dependence on primary resource markets, * to save landfill space and reduce the pollution caused by the disposal of waste, and * to destroy waste eliminating potential future liabilities. Co-processing contributes to the industrial competitiveness, is a complementary technology to concepts such as cleaner production or

recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. The recovery of energy from waste materials is often included in this concept. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the p ...

and should be considered as a treatment alternative within an integrated waste management concept. Some EII offer co-processing as a

sustainable waste management Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitorin ...

service. It is usually more cost effective to adapt existing facilities of EII than building new waste treatment capacities thereby reducing waste management cost to society. The waste management hierarchy (see figure below) shows that Co-processing is a recovery activity which should be considered after

waste prevention Waste minimisation is a set of processes and practices intended to reduce the amount of waste produced. By reducing or eliminating the generation of harmful and persistent wastes, waste minimisation supports efforts to promote a more sustainab ...

and recycling; Co-processing ranks higher in this hierarchy in comparison to disposal activities such as landfilling or incineration. image:Waste hierarchy.gif Figure 2: Waste Management Hierarchy

Potential of Co-processing

The global industrial demand for energy is roughly 45% of the total demand and the requirements of the energy intensive industries (EII) are more than half of the total industrial demand, at 27%. Worldwide, wastes suitable for Co-processing have an energy potential equivalent to nearly 20% of the fossil fuel energy used by the EII and coal-fired power plants. By 2030, the thermal substitution rate of waste could rise to nearly 30%. In the

EU-25 The largest expansion of the European Union (EU), in terms of territory, number of states, and population took place on 1 May 2004. The simultaneous accessions concerned the following countries (sometimes referred to as the "A10" countries): C ...

countries of Europe, the available energy potential in waste currently represents nearly 40% of this demand, and this is expected to rise to almost 50% by 2030. The EU cement industry already uses more than 40% fuels derived from waste and biomass in supplying the thermal energy to the grey clinker making process. Although the choice for this so-called alternative fuels (AF) is typically cost driven, other factors are becoming more important. Use of AF provides benefits for both society and the company: -emissions are lower than with fossil fuels, waste can be co-processed in an efficient and sustainable manner and the demand for certain virgin materials can be reduced. Yet there are large differences in the share of AF used between the European Union (EU) member states. Clearly, the societal benefits can be enlarged if more member states increase their AF share. In this study Ecofys assess the barriers and opportunities for further uptake of AF in 14 EU member states. Ecofys found that local factors constrain the market potential to a much larger extent than the technical and economic feasibility of the cement industry itself. In this summary they present the overall findings. The detailed assessments are available in separate cases studie
Source
Roughly 60% of the waste that could be used for Co-processing is biomass and therefore

carbon neutral Carbon neutrality is a state of net-zero carbon dioxide emissions. This can be achieved by balancing emissions of carbon dioxide with its removal (often through carbon offsetting) or by eliminating emissions from society (the transition to the "p ...

. In this way Co-processing offers a significant potential for the reduction of

greenhouse gas emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and ...

from fossil fuels. Furthermore, diverting industrial waste streams from landfills and incinerators without energy recovery contributes to reducing overall CO₂ emissions when used to substitute fossil fuels through Co-processing (as illustrated in the figure below). image:Reduction of Emissions through Co-Processing.gif Figure 3: Reduction of Emissions through Co-processing Other factors that must be considered when Co-processing waste include product quality standards, permitting aspects, and transparent communication in order to gain public acceptance.

Examples of waste that can be co-processed

Image:Used tires.jpg, Used tires Image:solid waste in plastic barrels.jpg, Various solid waste in plastic barrels Image:Shredded solid waste.jpg, Shredded solid waste Image:Contaminated paper.jpg, Contaminated paper Image:medical waste.jpg, Medical waste (pharmaceutical phial) Image:rice husk.jpg, Rice husk Image:Contaminated glass bottles.jpg, Contaminated glass bottles Image:sludge impregnation.jpg, Impregnated sludge Image:waste paint.jpg, Paint sludge

Coprocessing in Pharmaceutical Excipients Development

Coprocessing is the combination of two or more excipients to form materials (coprocessed excipients) of superior functionality and limited unwanted effects. Co-processing is a tool that is employed by pharmaceutical excipients manufacturers and formulation scientists to develop materials with superior performance. Coprocessing is fundamentally based on particle engineering that allows modification of Critical Material Attributes (CMA) of the primary excipients. These modifications are reflected in the resulting coprocessed material as enhanced functionality. The primary excipients are established pharmacopoeial materials.

External links

Co-Processing Waste Materials in Cement Production
On this website you will find various digital documentations related to the topic "Co-Processing Waste Materials in Cement Production".

fosters the international collaboration for sustainable development.
The World Business Council for Sustainable Development
provides a platform for companies to explore sustainable development, share knowledge, experiences and best practices, and to advocate business positions on these issues in a variety of forums, working with governments, non-governmental and intergovernmental organizations.
The Cement Sustainability Initiative (CSI)
was formed to help the cement industry to address the challenges of sustainable development. The business leaders of a group of major cement companies lead the initiative.
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
leads the nation's environmental science, research, education and assessment efforts. The mission of EPA is to protect human health and the environment.
Energy from Waste
Production of energy through the incineration of waste Downloads *https://web.archive.org/web/20090510083738/http://www.coprocem.com/literature-var-2 Literature on various aspects of Co-processing in EII *https://web.archive.org/web/20110708191924/http://www.coprocem.com/trainingkit/pages/home.html A training kit on Co-processing waste materials in cement production *https://cembureau.eu/media/2lte1jte/11603-ecofys-executive-summary_cembureau-2017-04-26.pdf Status and prospects of co-processing of waste in EU cement plants Videos *CBS: https://web.archive.org/web/20120801192046/http://www.kutv.com/content/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=a27e9417-f361-46ac-8f2e-fad9c5fce1d6 *NBC: http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=4299008 *Fox: http://www.myfoxutah.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail;jsessionid=75B311F6BF641601B9E01B42BE94CA24?contentId=7467388&version=4&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=1.1.1&sflg=1{{dead link, date=August 2017 , bot=InternetArchiveBot , fix-attempted=yes Sustainable energy Waste minimisation Waste management concepts Waste treatment technology