Industrial Sectors

Brief Overview of Iron & Steel SectorIndia is currently the world’s second-largest steel producer, and second-largest steel consumer (WSA, 2020a). As with any industrializing economy, the steel sector is of vital importance to India, contributing around 2% to the country’s GDP and employing around 2.5 million people in the steel and related sectors (MoS, 2020a). The Indian Iron and Steel segment offers a product mix that includes hot rolled parallel flange beams, columns rails, plates, coils, wire rods, and continuously cast products such as billets, blooms, beams, blanks, rounds, slabs, metallic, and ferroalloys. In FY 2018, India’s crude steel production crossed 100 MT for the first time, reaching 106.5 MT and registering a 4.5% year-on-year growth rate, and becoming the 2nd largest producer of steel in the world after China. India was also the largest producer of Sponge Iron (Direct Reduce Iron or DRI) in the world in 2020.In 2017, the Ministry of Steel (MoS) launched the National Steel Policy (NSP), which laid down the broad roadmap for encouraging long term growth for the Indian Steel Industry, both on demand and supply sides, by 2030-31 including to increase India’s teel making capacity to 300 Mt by 2030. This policy also encompasses targets to reduce energy consumption per tonne of steel, through adopting the latest energy efficiency measures.India is also among the largest iron ore producers in the world, ranking 4th globally. Iron ore is a key input product for manufacturing steel and primary iron. More than 85% of the iron ore reserves in the country are of medium or high-grade and are directly used in blast furnace and Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) plants, in the form of sized lumps, sinters, or pellets. Manufacturing Process & Energy ConsumptionThe basic process of manufacturing of iron & steel is carried out in two stages, sponge and pir iron through the reduction followed by production of crude steel. Secondary process involves production of merchant products from the crude steel. The steel industry in India is relatively heterogeneous compared to other countries, with a wide range of different sized facilities in the primary and secondary steelmaking sectors. There are also several different technologies currently being used, including the Blast Furnace – Basic Oxygen Furnace (BF-BOF), coal-based Direct Reduction (DR), gas-based DR, Electric Induction Furnace (EIF) and Electric Arc Furnace (EAF). BOF technology dominates a growing share of steel production (45%), being the preferred technology for most new capacity, with EAF (28%) and EIF (27%) taking an almost equal share of the remainder of the market.BF-BOF process is primarily used by integrated steel plants. After the BF-BOF process, molten steel is controlled to a target composition and temperature and is then cast by continuous casting machine to produce slabs and billets. These castings are rolled to the required dimensions by the rolling mill to produce the steel products. Sponge iron is produced by DRI process. Originally, natural gas based reformation technology used to be used in the DRI process. However, technology for using coal has since been developed and most of the Indian sponge iron units use coal both as fuel and reducing agent. Direct reduced iron along with steel scrap is then melted in an electric arc furnace (EAF) to produce molten steel and subsequent products.Fig: Process diagram of a typical Integrated Steel Plant(Source)The energy used in steel making is classified under primary and secondary sources. Energy purchased from outside such as coal, coke, electricity, gas etc. is classified as primary resource whereas recovered energy such as blast furnace and coke oven gas, waste heat from furnaces is classified as secondary resources. From the energy conservation perspective, major emphasis has always been increased use of secondary resources, such as recent spur in investment in WHR based power plants in large number of sponge iron making plants. Iron making by far the most energy intensive process accounting for close to 60 to 70% of total energy consumption. Typical fuel mix involves a) Coal (83.5%) b) Oil (2%) c) Gas (1.5%) d) Grid Electricity (13%). (Source) PAT Scheme for Iron & Steel SectorThe Iron & Steel sector is one of the designated sectors covered under the BEE’s PAT scheme. The modified threshold limit for the Iron & Steel Sector is 20,000 metric tonnes of oil equivalent of energy consumption per annum.PAT Cycles wise number of DCs, their total energy consumption (Million TOE) and energy savings targets (Million TOE) of the Iron and Steel Sector are presented belowCyclesNo. of DCsTotal Energy Consumption (Million TOE)Energy Saving Targets (Million TOE)PAT Cycle I6725.322.1PAT Cycle II7140.442.283PAT Cycle III297.6480.457PAT Cycle IV353.3340.1934PAT Cycle V232.82550.1687PAT Cycle VI50.5150.031PAT Cycle VII13460.062.729PAT Cycle VIII663.710.2438Energy Savings Achievement in the Iron & Steel Sector under PAT Cycle I and PAT Cycle II are 2.1Million TOE and 2.921 Million TOE respectively Best Practices Adopted by Iron & Steel SectorIron & Steel industries have adopted the following key operational best practices and technologies as part of their Industrial Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation (IEED) measuresInstallation of Top Recovery Turbine and Pulverized Coal Injection in Blast Furnace.Commissioning of LD Gas Recovery Plant in Steel melting shop.Use of Hydrogen in steel making reheating furnaces.Use of Plastics to replace PCI in Blast Furnaces.Direct rolling in mini steel plants.Hot charging of DRI in EAF. Details of Line MinistriesMinistry of Steel Details of Specialised Organization / Research InstituteResearch & Development Centre for Iron & Steel (RDCIS) SAIL, RanchiSteel Research & Technology Mission of India (SRTMI), New DelhiCentre of Excellence in Steel Technology (COEST), IIT MumbaiNational Institute of Secondary Steel Technology (NISST), Punjab Details of Industrial AssociationsIndian Steel Association List of Key Technologies100% electrolytic hydrogen based DRI.Waste Heat Recovery in Sinter Plat/ DRI.Hydrogen enrichment.Hisarna with 80-90% capture CCS.Increasing share of production from the secondary sector through scrap recycling.Installation of Top Recovery Turbine.Pulverized Coal Injection in Blast Furnace.Coke Dry QuenchingRegenerative/recuperative burner for reheating furnace

Brief Overview of Cement Sector In a rapidly developing nation such as India, there is no dearth of demand for new infrastructure. Indian Cement industry, the second largest producer of cement after China, produces 7% of the global cement production and completed 100 years of its service to the Nation in October 2014 with the first plant coming up in 1914. It is one of the fastest-growing sectors and is also humungous in its volume of production as compared to volumes worldwide. With a total of 206 large integrated cement plants and about 350 mini cement plants making up a total capacity of 539 million tonnes per annum in 2018-19, the Indian cement sector is a formidable giant. Indian cement consumption is around 235 kg per capita against the global average of 520 kg per capita. There is no foreseeable reason for any slowdown in the juggernaut of the cement industry in India. As per ICRA, in FY22, the cement production in India is expected to increase by ~12%YoY, driven by rural housing demand and government’s strong focus on Infrastructure Development. As per CRISIL Ratings, the Indian Cement Industry is likely to add ~80 million Tons (MY) capacity by FY24, the highest since the last 10 years, driven by increasing spending on housing and Infrastructure activities.Indian cement plants are comparable with the best in the world in respect of production facilities, technology, and energy efficiency. The sector has achieved the best specific energy consumption levels achieved i.e., 670 kcal/kg of clinker and around 68 kWh per tonne of cement, which are comparable with the best-achieved levels in the world. Manufacturing Process & Energy Consumption: Generally, cement manufacturing process involves the following stages: Crushing Pre-homogenization and raw meal grindingPre-heatingPre-calciningClinker production in the rotary kilnCooling and storingBlending Cement grindingStoring in the cement siloMostly dry processes is deployed in the raw material preparation and clinkerisation sub-processes.In the dry process, crushed raw materials are dried in a cylindrical rotary drier, mixed at per predetermined ratio, further ground and conveyed in different storage tanks. The prepared materials are further mixed as per pre-determined ratio and fed into rotary kiln for clinkerisation.Depending upon the usage of clinker and other materials in the final product, marketed cement product is classified under three different categories such as Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC), Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) & Portland Slag Cement (PSC). Clinker constitutes about 95% in OPC, Gypsum contributing for the rest. In PPC, 15 to 20% of the clinker is substituted by pozzolonic material such as fly ash whereas in PSC about 50% clinker is substituted by blast furnace slag, Gypsum contribution in both the cases remaining at the same level of about 5%. With increased availability of fly ash and its favorable contribution in improving the strength of concrete and reduction in cost of energy, share of PPC production has been continuously increasing all over the world, more so in India. Fig: Process diagram of a typical Dry type Integrated Cement Plant(Source)The cement plant consumes two types of primary energy: thermal energy and electricity. The material transport, crushing and milling mainly consumes electricity whereas thermal energy is used for calcination. The secondary energy sources used in cement production are kiln exhaust gas and hot air from clinker cooler. The secondary heat contained in the hot kiln exhaust gas is utilized primarily in pre-drying and preheating the raw materials before their introduction into the kiln and raw mill. The waste heat contained in the exhaust air from the clinker cooler serves to preheat combustion air and also to dry and preheat the raw materials before they enter the raw mill and kiln. Electricity is majorly consumed in the clinker grinding, raw material processing and clinker production. Typical distribution of energy usages in different processes is shown below:Sub-Processes% of Total Electricity ConsumptionRaw-material Preparation30%Clinker Production25%Clinker Grinding40%Others05%Electricity and Coal have been the sources of energy for most of the plants. Cost of both the energy resources have been sharply increasing putting pressure on the profitability margin even for the energy efficient units. With a view to remaining globally competitive, Indian Cement Industry has made major strides by undertaking innovative measures for managing the energy cost. These include:Investment in energy efficient technologiesHigh efficiency captive power generation including based on waste heat recovery.Use of non-conventional fuel like biomass, RDF (Municipal solid waste derived fuel), old tyres etc.Off-site renewable energy generation and wheeling through open access.Typical fuel mix of Cement manufacturing process includes a) Coal (97%) b) Oil (1%) c) Grid Electricity (2%). PAT Scheme for Cement Sector In the Cement Sector, to become a designated consumer, the notified threshold limit is 30,000 metric tonnes of oil equivalent of energy consumption per annum. PAT Cycles wise number of DCs, their total energy consumption (Million TOE) and energy savings targets (Million TOE) of the Cement Sector are presented below:CyclesNo. of DCsTotal Energy Consumption (Million TOE)Energy Saving Targets (Million TOE)PAT Cycle I8515.011.48PAT Cycle II11121.431.117PAT Cycle III141.7430.096PAT Cycle IV10.0740.004PAT Cycle V121.60.087PAT Cycle VI371.2420.063PAT Cycle VII12025.560.896PAT Cycle VIII250.6280.0323Energy Savings Achievement in the Cement Sector under PAT Cycle I and PAT Cycle II are 1.48 Million TOE and 1.56 Million TOE respectively. Best Practices Adopted by Cement Sector Cement industries have adopted the following key operational best practices and technologies as part of their Industrial Energy Efficiency and Decarbonisation (IEED) measures:Increase in AFR utilisation.Waste Heat Recovery from the pre-heater outlet. Adopting Renewable Energy.Calcium looping as Carbon Capture technology. Installation of Kiln Shell radiation recovery system in Kiln for CPP makes up water heating. Reduction of Clinker Factor in Pozzolana Portland Cement. Details of Line MinistriesDepartment for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under Ministry of Commerce and IndustryNational Council of Cement and Building Materials (NCCBM) under Ministry of Commerce and Industry Details of Specialised Organization / Research InstituteNational Council of Cement and Building Materials (NCCBM) under Ministry of Commerce and Industry Details of Industrial AssociationsCement Manufacturers Association  List of Key Technologies Increase in usage of AF from 2% to 10%.Waste heat recovery from the cooler and preheater outlet. Adoption of a Vertical roller mill for grinding.Installation of Kiln Shell radiation recovery system in kiln.Reduction in Clinker factor in Pozollana Portland Cement.Oxy-fuel combustion technologyManufacturing of polymer cement from waste of iron sludge