Fuels - cemsuisse

Fuels

Swiss cement manufacturers are important partners for the country’s waste management industry. Cement plants use material recycling and thermal recycling to process waste that would otherwise have to be disposed of through other means, or even classed as hazardous waste and treated at specialist facilities. The fact that cement plants use these waste materials is thus a benefit both to society and to the national economy.

Alternative fuels are reducing CO2 emissions (image: Holcim (Schweiz) AG)

Cement plants recycle waste materials

Recycling waste in the most efficient way possible makes sense from both a social and national economic perspective. As the production of cement requires high temperatures, cement plants make for extremely efficient waste incinerators. The temperatures involved are so high that no residual waste – which can be expensive to dispose of – is left over. Waste is recycled both materially and thermally, meaning that it becomes part of the cement itself! Many different ecological studies have been conducted on this topic, all of which show that incinerating certain fractions of waste in cement plants is very practical.

Recycling recoverable materials in the cement industry (image: Holcim (Schweiz) AG)

Recycling recoverable materials

Certain waste products, such as paper or PET plastic, can be recycled multiple times, and are known as “recoverable materials”. Others can be thermally recycled. There are even materials that can be materially and thermally recovered and recycled in cement plants. This means, for example, that the energy stored within the waste can be used for other purposes, and that at the same time, the chemical components of the waste can be used in manufacturing the cement itself. Any waste materials that cannot be used in this way are disposed of.

Safe disposal

The Swiss cement industry is an important and reliable actor in waste disposal in the country, and fulfils its disposal functions even in times of crisis. During the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020, the industry showed that it is fully aware of its responsibilities in this field.

Phosphorus recycling

From 2026, Switzerland must ensure that phosphorus is recovered from wastewater and phosphorus-rich waste, thereby closing the phosphorus cycle in the country. The Swiss cement industry, which recycles a substantial amount of sewage sludge for energy and materials, sees itself as part of the solution and supports various pilot and research projects centred on developing an efficient means of phosphorus recovery that results in no residual sewage sludge waste – ensuring that the use of sewage sludge as a source of recoverable energy and materials becomes a reality. To this end, a joint event was held with interested parties and authorities in August 2020, during which proposals on how to proceed were exchanged. Those in attendance expressed great interest in discussing the issue in further depth.