Lafarge Cement seek permission to use PSP at Hope
IN a move aimed at helping to reduce their carbon footprint and control escalating energy costs, Lafarge Cement UK are to apply to the Environment Agency for permission to use Processed Sewage Pellets (PSP) as an additional waste-derived fuel at Hope Works in Derbyshire.
As well as traditional fossil fuels, Hope Works already uses two other sustainable alternatives: scrap tyre chips and meat and bone meal (MBM). Now the company is applying for a permit to also use PSP – a fuel classed as ‘carbon neutral biomass’.
Explaining what PSP is and how the company plans to use it, Hope Works manager Ashley Bryan said: ‘These pellets are made from the sludge that remains after sewage treatment. The sludge is then further heat-treated, making it as harmless as garden soil.
‘In some parts of the country this material is used as an agricultural fertilizer. What we offer is a route to use this material in a very positive way, gaining valuable energy from a waste.
‘Waste-derived fuels continue to offer many benefits to our business – they help us maintain our environmental performance, reduce our carbon emissions and manage our very high energy costs. At a time like this when we are operating in a very tough market, this fuel offers us an economically viable and environmentally beneficial solution.
‘PSP would be used as an additional option for a waste-derived, sustainable fuel for our process, alongside those for which we already have permits. PSP can be incorporated without any major change to the plant, as it can be fed into our system using the equipment already established for MBM. This makes it even more attractive as a fuel option for Hope Works.’
PSP is already used as an effective fuel in the cement-making process in many other countries, including Austria, Spain, France and South Korea. It has also been used for over six years at Hope Works’ sister plant in Cauldon, Staffordshire.
It is estimated that by using 30,000 tonnes of PSP each year, some 20,000 tonnes of coal (enough to power around 6,000 homes for a year) will be replaced and emissions of CO2 will be reduced by approximately 50,000 tonnes, compared with burning fossil fuels.
As well as traditional fossil fuels, Hope Works already uses two other sustainable alternatives: scrap tyre chips and meat and bone meal (MBM). Now the company is applying for a permit to also use PSP – a fuel classed as ‘carbon neutral biomass’.
Explaining what PSP is and how the company plans to use it, Hope Works manager Ashley Bryan said: ‘These pellets are made from the sludge that remains after sewage treatment. The sludge is then further heat-treated, making it as harmless as garden soil.
‘In some parts of the country this material is used as an agricultural fertilizer. What we offer is a route to use this material in a very positive way, gaining valuable energy from a waste.
‘Waste-derived fuels continue to offer many benefits to our business – they help us maintain our environmental performance, reduce our carbon emissions and manage our very high energy costs. At a time like this when we are operating in a very tough market, this fuel offers us an economically viable and environmentally beneficial solution.
‘PSP would be used as an additional option for a waste-derived, sustainable fuel for our process, alongside those for which we already have permits. PSP can be incorporated without any major change to the plant, as it can be fed into our system using the equipment already established for MBM. This makes it even more attractive as a fuel option for Hope Works.’
PSP is already used as an effective fuel in the cement-making process in many other countries, including Austria, Spain, France and South Korea. It has also been used for over six years at Hope Works’ sister plant in Cauldon, Staffordshire.
It is estimated that by using 30,000 tonnes of PSP each year, some 20,000 tonnes of coal (enough to power around 6,000 homes for a year) will be replaced and emissions of CO2 will be reduced by approximately 50,000 tonnes, compared with burning fossil fuels.
