The

Industry

Cement

Members of Group H, for CHE 581

Supervised By

Engr. Dr. C.N. Owabor

B.Eng Chemical Engineering, 500L

University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria
March 20, 2012

MEMBERS OF GROUP H

S/N NAME

MAT. NO

AKINBULUMA TOSIN

ENG0701650

EMEBU SAMUEL

ENG0701685

NSAKA ESTHER

ENG0701728

ONWUEMENE O. FAITH

ENG0604576

OSARUMWENSE EGHOSA SAMUEL

ENG0701767

OLADIMEJI ISAAC

ENG0701745

IGHODALO .E. HENRIETTA

ENG0701704

UMANAH EMEMOBONG

ENG0601047

ABIA EMEM PETER

ENG0701642

10

EHIMWENMA BELLO

ENG0701668

11

Contents
List of figures
Abstract
Acknowledgements
1. Introduction 4-7
1.1 A brief history of portland cement
1.2 Uses of Portland cement
1.2.1 Rapid-Hardening cement
1.2.2 Moderate-Heat cement
1.3 The chemistry of cement function
1.4 Environmental implication
1.4.1 Dust emission
1.4.2 CO2 emission.
1.4.3 Quarry and plant water runoff
1.4.4 Chrome bricks
2. Portland cement manufacturing..
2.1 process description

8-11

3. Cement production process route 12-13

4. Benefit of cement industry to the Nigerian economy 14
4.1 challenges in the cement industry
5. Emerging trends in the global and Nigerian cement industry..

15

6. Local content initiative in the emerging trends of the Nigeria cement industry..
6.1 Raw material input
6.2 Employment
6.3 output
6.4 Improvement of imported technology

16-19

7. Corporate social responsibility of cement industry 20

8. Conclusion.

21

9. Recommendation 22
10. Reference..

23

LIST OF FIGURES
1. Block diagram for portland cement production
2.Block diagram for the processing of cement

SUMMARY
4

Despite an impressive performance of the Nigeria cement industry in the subsaharan region of Africa the price of cement in Nigeria still remains expensive and
unaffordable by the common man. This is majorly attributed to poor power supply,
poor transportation network, importation of raw material for cement production and
government policies encouraging the importation of cement into the country.
In spite of the challenges facing the Nigeria cement industry. The sector has been
able to contribute to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), create employment and
provide social infrastructure and responsibility for communities within and outside
its location of operation.
Regardless of the lapses in the Nigeria cement industry, one can not totally ignore
its presence in the Nigeria economy as this sector has immensely contributed to the
growth of the Nigeria economy through the government-private partnership.

Acknowledgement

It is factual that without the immense contribution of some dynamic people this
assignment would not have been a success .But above all the largest part of the
glory must go to the almighty God for his assistance.
A very big well done goes to every members of this group most especially to Tosin
Akinbuluma,Emebu Samuel and Nsaka Esther for making their computers available
for use. Also we must say a very big thank you to Godwin Bassey of group G and
every members of room 193 hall 4 unit 1 for helping us with internet connection and
accommodating us respectively during the course of this research. we jointly
commend them and appreciate their kind gesture.
Finally we are very grateful to everybody that has in one way or the other contribute
to the success of this project. we say God bless you all

1.0

INTRODUCTION

Cement is a fine grey powder which when reacted with water hardens to form a rigid
Chemical mineral structure which gives concrete its high strengths. Cement is in effect, the
glue that holds concrete together.
Concrete is an extremely versatile material, being used in the production of anything from
Nuclear radiation shields to playground structures and from bridges to yachts. It is able to be
Used in such a wide variety of applications because it can be poured into any shape
Reinforced with steel or glass fibres, precast, coloured, has a variety of finishes and can even
Set under water. Modern concrete is made by mixing aggregate (sand, stones and shingle) with
Portland cement and water and allowing it to set. Of these ingredients, the most
Important is Portland cement.
1.1 A brief history of Portland cement
The credit for cement discovery is given to the Romans, who mixed lime (CaCO3) with volcanic
ash, producing a cement mortar which was used during construction of such impressive
structures as the Colosseum. When the Roman Empire fell, the information on how to make
cement was lost and was not rediscovered until the 16th century.
Cement has been made since Roman times, but over time the recipes used to make cement
have been refined. The earliest cements were made from lime and pozzolana (a volcanic ash
containing significant quantities of SiO2 and Al2O3) mixed with ground brick and water.
This cement was not improved upon until 1758, when Smeaton noticed that using a limestone
that was 20 - 25 % clay and heating the mixture resulted in a cement that could harden under
water. He called this new cement 'hydraulic lime'. When the mixture was heated, a small
quantity of it was sintered. Normally this was discarded as waste, but in the 1800s Aspdin
and Johnson discovered that when the entire batch was sintered and then ground, a superior
cement was formed. This substance became designated Portland cement (after the region in
which they were working) and is the most common cement in use today.
Portland cement was first produced commercially in New Zealand in 1886 by James Wilson
and Co., and has been produced here ever since. There are currently two companies
producing cement in New Zealand: Golden Bay Cement Ltd. in Whangarei and Milburn New
Zealand Ltd. in Westport. Production has increased from aound 5 000 t/annum in 1900 to in
excess of 500 000 t/annum in 1991 and a New Zealand market demand in 1996 in excess of
800 000 t/annum.
Portland cement is currently defined as a mixture of argillaceous (i.e. clay-like) and
calcaneous (i.e. containing CaCO3 or other insoluble calcium salts) materials mixed with
gypsum (CaSO42H2O) sintered and then pulverised into a fine powder. The precise
7

definition of Portland cement varies between different countries, and in New Zealand are
controlled by New Zealand's Standard Specification (NZS) 3122. Portland cement differs
from its precursors primarily in the fact that it is sintered.
1.2 Uses of Portland cement
Cement is produced in three main grades: ordinary Portland cement, rapid hardening cement and
moderate-heat cement.
1.2.1

1.2.2

Rapid-hardeningcement:
used in precast concrete
pipes and tiles. It is finer ground so that it hydrates more
.
Moderate-heat cement:
used for the construction of hydro-electric dams
as the heat produced by ordinary cement creates uneven
expansion and hence cracking when such a large volume of concrete is used.

1.3 The chemistry of cement function

Concrete mix is a mixture of cement and aggregate - sand
and gravel. When water is added to this the cement undergoes a series of chemical reactions
to form a "gel" (a colloidal system). The fine cement particles are broken down into even
smaller particles (thus increasing the reactive surface) by crystallizing out from the
supersaturated solution formed. A series of immensely strong Si-O-Si bonds form between
the particles, making a network in which the aggregates are trapped. In addition, bonds are
formed to the aggregates, but these are much weaker, especially for smooth, inert, hard
aggregates: because they have a smaller surface area than rough aggregates, a smaller area
can be involved in bonding.
These reactions continue to take place for some time (depending on the exact composition of
the cement), and after the initial brief expansion of the cement the material shrinks as
unreacted water is lost. It is rare for all the cement to react:usually after five months the
grains are only hydrated to a depth of 6-9m, while cement grains range up to 100m in
diameter.
Of these compounds, C3S and C3A are mainly responsible for the strength of the cement.
High percentages of C3S (low C2S) results in high early strength but also high heat generation
as the concrete sets. The reverse combination of low C3S and high C2S develops strengths
more slowly (over 52 rather than 28 days) and generates less heat. C3A causes undesirable
heat and rapid reacting properties, which can be prevented by adding CaSO4 to the final
product. C3A can be converted to the more desirable C4AF by the addition of Fe2O3 before
heating, but this also inhibits the formationof C3S. C4AF makes the cement more resistant to
seawater and results in a somewhat slower reaction which evolves less heat.
The balance of the formed compounds versus the performance characteristics required from
the cement is a chemically controlled parameter. For this reason considerable efforts are
made during the manufacturing process to ensure the correct chemical compounds in the
correct ratios are present in the raw materials before introduction of the materials to the kiln.

Breaking the reaction processes into a number of simple zones means we can make some
approximations about the cement formation process.
Zone 1: 0 - 35 min, 800 - 1100oC
Decarbonation. Formation of 3CaOAl2O3 above 900oC. Melting of fluxing compounds
Al2O3 and Fe2O3.
CaCO3 CaO + CO2 (heat)
Zone 2: 35 - 40 min, 1100 - 1300oC
Exothermic reactions and the formation of secondary silicate phases as follows:
heat
2CaO + SiO2 2CaOSiO2
Zone 3: 40 - 50 min, 1300 - 1450 - 1300oC
Sintering and reaction within the melt to form ternary silicates and tetracalcium aluminoferrates:
heat + time
2CaOSiO2 + CaO 3CaOSiO2
heat + time
3CaOAl2O3 + CaO + Fe2O3 4CaOAl2O3
Fe2O3
Zone 4: 50 - 60 min, 1300 - 1000oC
Cooling and crystallisation of the various mineral phases formed in the kiln.[1]
1.4 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS
Many of the aspects of the cement making process are potentially environmentally damaging,
although these risks can be minimised. The areas of potential concern are listed below.
1.4.1 Dust emissions
The manufacture of cement generates large quantities of dust. These must be prevented (both
on environmental and economic grounds) from escaping to the atmosphere. The two areas
where dust has the potential to escape are via air streams that have been used to carry cement
(e.g. the mills or kiln) and directly from equipment used to transport cement (e.g. the various
conveyor belts). Thus to prevent dust emissions all transport equipment is enclosed, and the
air both from these enclosures and from the kiln and mills is treated in an electrostatic
precipitator to remove its load of dust.
1.4.2 CO2 emissions
Cement manufacture is an energy intensive process. One of the most significant challenges
facing the industry into the 21st century is a requirement to reduce CO2 emissions. CO2 is
produced during the calcination phase of the manufacturing process and also as a result of
burning fossil fuels. Opportunity to reduce emissions through increased energy efficiency is
only possible on the latter of the CO2 emissions.
1.4.3 Quarry and plant water runoff
Runoff of storm water and treatment of waste water from quarries is a problem for almost all
quarry operations. Usually this is trapped in wetland areas where the water is treated in a
controlled manner. Within the factory runoff can be contaminated by oils and lubricants, but
the runoff is monitored and training programmes are reguarly undertaken to ensure this does
not happen.
1.4.4 Chrome bricks
Kiln bricks used to be made of hexavalent chrome, which is a carcinogen and causes
dermititus in some people.
9

2.0

Portland Cement Manufacturing

2.1 Process Description

10

Portland cement is a fine powder, gray or white in color, that consists of a mixture of
hydraulic cement materials comprising primarily calcium silicates, aluminates and
aluminoferrites.More than 30 raw materials are known to be used in the manufacture of
portland cement, and these materials can be divided into four distinct categories: calcareous,
siliceous, argillaceous, and ferrifrous. These materials are chemically combined through
pyroprocessing and subjected to subsequent mechanical processing operations to form gray and
white portland cement. Gray Portland cement is used for structural applications and is the more
common type of cement produced. White portland cement has lower iron and manganese
contents than gray portland cement and is used primarily for decorative purposes. Portland
cement manufacturing plants are part of hydraulic cement manufacturing, which also includes
natural, masonry, and pozzolanic cement.
A diagram of the process, which encompasses production of both portland and masonry cement,
is shown in figure 1 below, the process can be divided into the following primary components:
raw material acquisition and handling, kiln feed preparation, pyroprocessing, and finished
cement grinding. Each of these process components is described briefly below.
The initial production step in portland cement manufacturing is raw materials
acquisition.Calcium, the element of highest concentration in portland cement, is obtained from a
variety of calcareous raw materials, including limestone, chalk, marl, sea shells, aragonite, and
an impure limestone known as "natural cement rock". Typically, these raw materials are obtained
from open-face quarries, but underground mines or dredging operations are also used. Raw
materials vary from facility to facility. Some quarries produce relatively pure limestone that
requires the use of additional raw materials to provide the correct chemical blend in the raw mix.
In other quarries, all or part of the noncalcarious constituents are found naturally in the
limestone. Occasionally, pockets of pyrite,which can significantly increase emissions of sulfur
dioxide (SO2), are found in deposits of limestone,clays, and shales used as raw materials for
portland cement. Because a large fraction of the mass of this primary material is lost as carbon
dioxide (CO2) in the kiln, Portland cement plants are located close to a calcareous raw material
source whenever possible. Other elements included in the raw mix are silicon, aluminum, and
iron. These materials are obtained from ores and minerals such as sand, shale, clay, and iron ore.
Again, these materials are most commonly from open-pit quarries or mines, but they may be
dredged or excavated from underwater deposits.Either gypsum or natural anhydrite, both of
which are forms of calcium sulfate, is introduced to the process during the finish grinding
operations. These materials, also excavated from quarries or mines, are generally purchased from
an external source, rather than obtained directly from a captive operation by the cement plant.
The second step in portland cement manufacture is preparing the raw mix, or kiln feed, for the
pyroprocessing operation. Raw material preparation includes a variety of blending and sizing
operations that are designed to provide a feed with appropriate chemical and physical properties.
The raw material processing operations differ somewhat for wet and dry processes.Cement raw
materials are received with an initial moisture content varying from 1 to more than 50 percent. If
the facility uses dry process kilns, this moisture is usually reduced to less than 1 percent before
or during grinding. Drying alone can be accomplished in impact dryers, drum dryers,paddleequipped rapid dryers, air separators, or autogenous mills. However, drying can also be

11

accomplished during grinding in ball-and-tube mills or roller mills. While thermal energy for
drying
can be supplied by exhaust gases from separate, direct-fired coal, oil, or gas burners, the most
efficient and widely used source of heat for drying is the hot exit gases from the pyroprocessing
system.Materials transport associated with dry raw milling systems can be accomplished by a
varietyof mechanisms, including screw conveyors, belt conveyors, drag conveyors, bucket
elevators, air slide conveyors, and pneumatic conveying systems. The dry raw mix is
pneumatically blended and stored in specially constructed silos until it is fed to the
pyroprocessing system.
In the wet process, water is added to the raw mill during the grinding of the raw materials in ball
or tube mills, thereby producing a pumpable slurry, or slip, of approximately 65 percent solids.
The slurry is agitated, blended, and stored in various kinds and sizes of cylindrical tanks or slurry
basins until it is fed to the pyroprocessing system.
The heart of the portland cement manufacturing process is the pyroprocessing system. This
system transforms the raw mix into clinkers, which are gray, glass-hard, spherically shaped
nodules. The chemical reactions and physical processes that constitute the transformation are
quite complex, but they can be viewed conceptually as the following sequential events:
1. Evaporation of free water;
2. Evolution of combined water in the argillaceous components;
3. Calcination of the calcium carbonate (CaCO3) to calcium oxide (CaO);
4. Reaction of CaO with silica to form dicalcium silicate;
5. Reaction of CaO with the aluminum and iron-bearing constituents to form the liquid
phase;
6. Formation of the clinker nodules;
7. Evaporation of volatile constituents (e. g., sodium, potassium, chlorides, and sulfates);
and
8. Reaction of excess CaO with dicalcium silicate to form tricalcium silicate.
This sequence of events may be conveniently divided into four stages, as a function of location
and temperature of the materials in the rotary kiln.
1. Evaporation of uncombined water from raw materials, as material temperature increases to
100C (212F);
2. Dehydration, as the material temperature increases from 100C to approximately 430C
(800F) to form oxides of silicon, aluminum, and iron;
3. Calcination, during which carbon dioxide (CO2) is evolved, between 900C (1650F) and
982C (1800F), to form CaO; and
4. Reaction, of the oxides in the burning zone of the rotary kiln, to form cement clinker at
temperatures of approximately 1510C (2750F).
Rotary kilns are long, cylindrical, slightly inclined furnaces that are lined with refractory to
protect the steel shell and retain heat within the kiln. The raw material mix enters the kiln at the
elevated end, and the combustion fuels generally are introduced into the lower end of the kiln in
a countercurrent manner. The materials are continuously and slowly moved to the lower end by
rotation of the kiln. As they move down the kiln, the raw materials are changed to cementitious
12

or hydraulic minerals as a result of the increasing temperature within the kiln. The most
commonly used kiln fuels are coal, natural gas, and occasionally oil. The use of supplemental
fuels such as waste solvents, scrap rubber, and petroleum coke has expanded in recent years.
NOTE:
Five different processes are used in the portland cement industry to accomplish the
pyroprocessing step: the wet process, the dry process (long dry process), the semidry process, the
dry process with a preheater, and the dry process with a preheater/precalciner. Each of these
processes accomplishes the physical/chemical steps defined above. However, the processes vary
with respect to equipment design, method of operation, and fuel consumption. Generally, fuel
consumption decreases in the order of the processes listed. The paragraphs below briefly
describe the process, starting with the wet process and then noting differences in the other
processes.
In the wet process and long dry process, all of the pyroprocessing activity occurs in the rotary
kiln. Depending on the process type, kilns have length-to-diameter ratios in the range of 15:1 to
40:1.While some wet process kilns may be as long as 210 m (700 ft), many wet process kilns and
all dry process kilns are shorter. Wet process and long dry process pyroprocessing systems
consist solely of the simple rotary kiln. Usually, a system of chains is provided at the feed end of
the kiln in the drying or preheat zones to improve heat transfer from the hot gases to the solid
materials. As the kiln rotates, the chains are raised and exposed to the hot gases. Further kiln
rotation causes the hot chains to fall into the cooler materials at the bottom of the kiln, thereby
transferring the heat to the load.
Dry process pyroprocessing systems have been improved in thermal efficiency and productive
capacity through the addition of one or more cyclone-type preheater vessels in the gas stream
exiting the rotary kiln. This system is called the preheater process. The vessels are arranged
vertically, in series, and are supported by a structure known as the preheater tower. Hot exhaust
gases from the rotary kiln pass countercurrently through the downward-moving raw materials in
the preheater vessels.Compared to the simple rotary kiln, the heat transfer rate is significantly
increased, the degree of heat utilization is greater, and the process time is markedly reduced by
the intimate contact of the solid particles with the hot gases. The improved heat transfer allows
the length of the rotary kiln to be reduced. The hot gases from the preheater tower are often used
as a source of heat for drying raw materials in the raw mill. [2]
BLOCK DIAGRAM FOR CEMENT PROCESSING

13

14

3.0 Cement Production Process Route.

Portland cement (the only type of cement in common use today) is manufactured in a four
step process.
Step 1 - Quarrying
Limestone and a 'cement rock' such as clay or shale are quarried and brought to the cement
works. These rocks contain lime (CaCO3), silica (SiO2), alumina (Al2O3) and ferrous
oxide (Fe2O3) - the raw materials of cement manufacture.
Step 2 - Raw material preparation
To form a consistent product, it is essential that the same mixture of minerals is used every
time. For this reason the exact composition of the limestone and clay is determined at this
point, and other ingredients added if necessary. The rock is also ground into fine particles
to increase the efficiency of the reaction.
Step 3 - Clinkering
The raw materials are then dried, heated and fed into a rotating kiln. Here the raw
materials react at very high temperatures to form 3CaOSiO2 (tricalcium silicate),
2CaOSiO2 (dicalcium silicate), 3CaOAl2O3 (tricalcium aluminate) and
4CaOAl2O3
Fe2O3 (tetracalcium alumino-ferrate).
Step 4 - Cement milling
The 'clinker' that has now been produced will behave just like cement, but it is in particles
up to 3 cm in diameter. These are ground down to a fine powder to turn the clinker into
useful cement.
Cement production has several quite serious environmental hazards associated with it: dust
and CO2 emissions and contaminated run-off water.
These production steps are streamlined into:
Preparing raw materials: Mixing/homogenising, grinding and preheating (drying)
produces the raw meal.
Burning of raw meal to form cement clinker in the kiln: The components of the raw
meal react at high temperatures (900-1500 C) in the precalciner and in the rotary kiln, to
give cement clinker.
Finish grinding of clinker and mixing with additives: After cooling the clinker is
ground together with additives.
Two types of kilns are distinguished: rotary kilns and shaft kilns. The former is mainly used in
industrialized countries,
while the latter is more in use in China.

15

BLOCK DIAGRAM FOR PORTLAND CEMENT PRODUCTION

CORRECTIVE
MINERALS

LOCAL ROCK
LIMESTONE

RAW MIXTURE MILL

RAW MIXTURE
SILO

ROTATING
KILN

CLINKER SILO

CEMENT MILL

ADDITIONAL
MATERIAL FLY ASH,
BLAST FURNANCE

PARKING AND
TRANSPORT OF
CEMENT TO
CONSUMER

16

Fig 3.0

4.0 BENEFITS OF CEMENT INDUSTRY TO NIGERIAN ECONOMY

The cement industry has served as a major employer of both the skilled and unskilled
labour in Nigeria.
Cement has contributed massively in the completion of most Engineering works such as
road construction,as well as the building of houses.
The cement has created an avenue for competitive advantage.
The cement industry has contributed to the aspect of encouraging private sector to play
pivotal role in the industrial development of the country.This can be seen by various
industries like WESTCOM TECHNOLOGIES AND ENERGY SERVICE LIMITED
which is presently into terminal operation of bagging of cement;IBETO CEMENT
COMPANY in port Harcourt having a capacity of 1.5m metric tonnes per annum and
some other companies which also engage in manufacturing of cement (like the dangote
cement)
The industry has helped in the growth of the real gross domestic product (GDP) of
Nigeria economy.

However,the aboved mentioned benefits has not fully taken shape in our Nigerian economy
today as a result of the following reason :
4.1 challenges

High cost of road transportation

Demand is high and supply is low hence leading to bridging by importation.
The prices of cement in Nigeria today have risen drastically due to factors of inflation,
deficient infrastructure challenges and supply bottleneck. An average price of cement has
moved from N625 in 2002 to N2000 in 2008.As a result of such increase in price, the
federal government has issued license to some manufacturer and bagging plants to import
cement.
Poor power supply.

importation of raw materials such as gypsum.

17

5.0 EMERGING TRENDS IN THE GLOBAL AND NIGERIAN CEMENT

INDUSTRY

Indian cement industry has been very proactive in adopting various

technological advancements taking place all over the world. This was
particularly triggered by the partial decontrol of cement industry in 1982
followed by full decontrol in 1989 giving the resultant free market
competition an opportunity for growth in production and productivity.
The share of energy inefficient wet process plants had slowly decreased from
94.4% in 1960 to
61.6% in 1980. Thereafter as a result of quantum jump in production
capacities through
installation of modern dry process plants as well as conversion of some of the
wet process plants,
the share of wet process has reduced to less than 5% today. During the last
two decades (80's and 90's), major technological advancements took place in
design of cement plant equipment/systems basically in the following major
areas :
a) Pre-calcination
b) High pressure grinding
c) Automation in process control
d) High efficiency particle separation
e) Clinker cooling
These resulted in sea change developments globally and the Indian cement
industry followed the
international trend. The special features noticeable were:
(i) Standard size of the new plants neared a million tonnes per annum
(ii) Large areas of limestone even in remote areas exploited by cluster of
plants
(iii) Active search made for the latest type of technology and equipment to
continually bring
down the energy costs
(iv) Large number of old wet process plants closed down or converted into
dry process on account of high cost of operation
(v) Introduction of multiple grades of cement on strength parameters
surpassing the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) specifications
(vi) Many plants taking to automation, computer controlled systems and man
power reduction
(vii) Improvement in packaging with the use of HDPE/PP/paper bags in place
of conventional jute bags
(viii) Shift in the marketing strategy with specific emphasis on quality
associated with brand.[3]

The trends used in Indian industries as explained above is based on best global
practices and hence also applicable to the Nigerian cement factories.
18

6.0 LOCAL CONTENT INITIATIVE IN THE EMERGING TREND OF THE

NIGERIAN CEMENT INDUSTRY
6.1 Raw materials Input
The primary input for the production of cement is limestone. Secondary materials are gypsum,
shale or clay, and fuel oil or coal. More than 95% of the sector's materials are obtained locally
(most companies import the gypsum). One company now operates with 100% locally sourced
materials, and CMAN is making efforts to ensure the local sourcing of all materials.
Nkalagu Cement and Ashaka Cement Company have captive plants dedicated to satisfying their
paper-bag needs. However, the Nigerian Paper Mill in Jebba is the main supplier. The bag
manufacturers have a total installed capacity of 230 106 bags per annum, and the seven main
cement producers require 104 106 bags per annum. There is, therefore, an excess capacity of
55% in the bag-manufacturing industry.
6.2 Employment
Employment categories in the cement industry range from the professional grades (the works,
mechanical, production, electrical, and process engineers), to the skilled grades (the machinists,
plant mechanics, pipefitters and welders, kiln mechanics, and kiln burners), to administrative
staff, to unskilled labour.
All the cement-manufacturing firms in operation in Nigeria were set up with a foreign technical
partner. These partners furnished the initial expertise needed for operations, so the proportion of
expatriate personnel in most of the cement companies was initially high. However, with the
implementation of the Nigeria Enterprises Promotion Decrees of 1972 and 1977 and determined
efforts to train Nigerians, the cement industry now has many Nigerians in its management and
professional cadres.
The present estimated number of staff at the seven firms in the cement industry is 9000. About
10% of these people are in the professional and management categories. The rest are supervisory,
clerical, and other junior workers. The expatriate staff constitute about 2% of the total work
force.
6.3 Output

19

Although there have been seven cement companies operating in Nigeria since 1978, there are
eight cement works (WAPCO has two, at Ewekoro and Shagamu). The combined installed
capacity of the cement factories is about 5.3 106 t/year. Table 3 shows the local production of
cement by the individual companies in Nigeria from 1981 to 1990 and gives the capacity
utilization for the industry as a whole. The output in 1990 was estimated at 3.05 106 t,
representing 61% capacity utilization. The industry's advantage in local sourcing has led to a
fairly stable trend in the level of capacity utilization, so the capacity underutilization shown in
the table must be attributed to other factors.
6.4 Improvement of imported technology
WAPCO commissioned its first works at Ewekoro in 1960/61, when the first kilns were built.
Subsequent kilns followed until the full complement of three kilns at Ewekoro and two kilns at
Shagamu was reached. Both works operate with the relatively old wet-process technology,
although two of the kilns at Ewekoro were converted in 1981 to the semiwet process. Over the
years, major refurbishment and improvement projects have been carried out at both works.
Ewekoro Works is one of the oldest successfully operating cement works in the world. Because
of its obsolescence, it has a high maintenance-demand factor and a more complex mix of
machinery and equipment than its sister works at Shagamu. It has a complete quarry unit; five 12
HP raw mills (1 HP = about 745 W); five cement mills; a set of silos for ground clinker and
cement; a filter press for the two semiwet kilns; and three kilns.
Over the years, Ewekoro has had many improvement and refurbishment projects: rebuilding of
the grate cooler structure; conversion of the long wet kiln to the semiwet process by the
introduction of the filter press unit and the Lepol grate; refurbishment of the electrostatic
precipitator unit to reduce dust loss and improve the environment; complete change of the chain
system in the kiln; civil engineering works on the preheater system; and repairs and
refurbishment of the back-end kiln-seal system.
Shagamu Works was designed with the benefit of the experience gained at Ewekoro and is newer
and more robust. It also is less complex; it has a big quarry; two big crushers (for rocks); three
raw mills (3000 HP each); two wet kilns (60 t/h each); two cement mills (each with 3000 HP and
a cement capacity of 100 t/h); and two cement-packing units (about 100 t/h).
The major refurbishment projects at Shagamu include the improvement of fuel-consumption
efficiency; and dust insufflation to minimize dust-loss problems.
Case 1: Improvement to the Davies preheater system: At commissioning, Ewekoro Works
consisted of three long kilns using the wet process. However, in the late 1970s, a conversion of
the works was carried out so that two of the kilns could use the semiwet process. Concomitant
with this conversion was a change in the process technology. The slurry is now subjected to
further processing before it is let into the kiln proper. The slurry is first filtered in a reactor,
where the moisture content of the slurry is drastically reduced. The slurry exits from the filter in
a cake form. The cake material then passes to the nodulizer, which is essentially a horizontal

20

plate rotating and vibrating on its axis. The effect of the movement of the nodulizer is to turn the
cake into neat spherical balls.
The nodules then pass to the Davies preheater, where, as the name implies, they are preheated
before they pass into the kiln. Passing the nodules through the Davies preheater reduces energy
consumption. In the Davies preheater, nearly all the moisture in the nodules evaporates before
they go into the kiln, where calcination takes place to produce the cement clinker.
The Davies preheater is a patented technology, introduced to WAPCO by BCI. It consists of three
main parts: the dome, the bowl, and the floor. Surrounding the floor are two slanting coaxial
cylinders. The outer one (the bowl) is mounted to a stationary, rigid steel frame so that it can
rotate independently on its axis, which is a shaft connected to a bearing arrangement at the top.
At the bottom of the dome there is space above the floor to give clearance.
These cylinders (i.e., the bowl and the dome) are sealed at the outer and inner edges with an
annular top cover and hood, respectively, which confine the nodules between the cylinders but
leave open to the atmosphere the upper side of a roof that spans and closes the dome. The
underside of the roof slopes upward and inward and remains static. It has an inlet through which
the nodules are fed and an outlet for exhausting gas.
The dome, bowl, and floor rotate independently about their respective axes. Only the floor is
power driven, and this is by an auxiliary motor. There are no mechanical links between the bowl,
dome, or floor. The rotation of the bowl and dome is due to the friction of the nodules. The
nodules move through the annulus to the floor chamber and then exit into the front end of the
kiln. Going counter to the flow of the nodules is hot air from the kiln, which preheats the nodules
while they are in the preheater.
Water seals are used to keep the whole arrangement air tight. There are three water seals: the
bottom seal and the inner and outer top seals. However, after the preheater was in operation for
some time at Ewekoro, problems were encountered. There were leaks in the top seals, allowing
water into the nodules. Furthermore, the water leakage caused frequent seizures of the whole
unit.
A project team, set up to study the problem, came up with a solution: converting the wet seal to a
dry seal at the top level. The seal chamber was given a heat-resistant rubberteflon seal. A spring
was also mounted so that the constant motion of the parts helped to reinforce the seal. This
solution was arrived at after much experimentation.
Another output of the industry is decorative products, on which WAPCO has monopoly. Portland
Paints and Products Division (PPPD) was established in 1972, when WAPCO acquired Cement
Paints Nigeria. At inception, the division manufactured only cement-based decorative products,
known as Snowcem, Cemwash, and Color-crete. Between 1974 and 1979, Sandtex products,
manufactured in the United Kingdom by BCI, were introduced by PPPD. In 1980, the division
commenced the local manufacture (under licence) of Sandtex trowel, Sandtex matt, and Sandtex
textured. Other PPPD products has introduced to the Nigerian market include a roller-textured
decorative coating (Bluetex) and a high-quality emulsion paint (vinyl matt emulsion).
21

Case 2: Improvement to the cooler-drive system: The clinker exits at the back end of the kiln at
a temperature of > 200C. In this state, it cannot be fed into the mills for grinding. A cooler is,
therefore, incorporated at the end of the kiln. In the original cooler assembly at Ewekoro, the
cooler drive is mounted at the front end. The power to drive the cooler is transmitted via a V-belt
pulley to a gear box, then to the drive shaft of the cooler. Thus, the drive is eccentric to the
cooler. However, it the machinery and components were too compact, making access for
maintenance very difficult.
In 1985, the staff improved this unit by mounting the drive on the side. This arrangement was
similar to the original, but the drive was mounted at the centre of the moving frame of the cooler,
rather than being eccentric.
Case 3: Improvement to the cement-milling system: After cooling, the next unit operation in
cement manufacture is milling. At this stage, the clinker, dosed with gypsum, enters the mill,
where it is ground. Cement emerges at the end of this operation. The milled material is sent to
the separator, where it is discharged onto a vibrating, electrically controlled screen. Coarse
rejects fall off the surface of the screen, and the fine dust is sent to the silos for storage. The
pumping unit, submerged in a pit, pumps the cement up against gravity to the silos. The vibrating
screen is also at underground level, in the pump pit. However, water logging of the pit, especially
during rainy seasons, hampered production and made maintenance more difficult.
The screening mechanization is now a mechanically driven rotary screen, which rotates at the
same speed as the mill. As well, the pump was brought up to ground level, eliminating all the
problems.[4]

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7.0 CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY OF CEMENT INDUSTRY IN

NIGERIA
Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR has been defined by Lord Holme and Richard
Watts in The World Business Council for Sustainable Developments publication
Making Good Business Sense as the continuing commitment by business to
behave ethically and contribute to economic development while improving the
quality of life of the workforce and their families as well as the local community and
society at large"[5].
From the explanation of corporate social responsibility the dangote cement
company have played their part and are still contributing in CSR across Africa and
specifically in Nigeria, both nation-wide and in host communities of cement
factories, for which the company has spent a total of #15.5 billion in the 2011 as
explained by the executive director of Dangote Foundation Mr. Ahmed Iya. The
foundation has covered wide sectors which includes: health, community service,
education, empowerment e.t.c across Nigeria. Typical scenarios of CRS carried out
by the company in Nigeria includes:
(i).Education
In August 2011 #100 million,#18 million and #50 million was donated to the
proposed Otuoke University in Bayelsa state, University of Nigeria and Port Harcourt
respectively for various developmental projects.
(ii).Security
The dangote group denoted #50 million to Lagos sates security fund in March
2011.
(iii).Succour for Victims of Natural Disaster/violence
#100 and #60 million was denoted to Lagos state in July 2010 and Ibadan flood
victims for rehabilitation purposes. #400 million was donated to victims of postelection violence in Kaduna, Bauchi and Gombe.
(iv).Price reduction programs
Dangote cement factories have been distributed in zones nation-wide and there is
an ongoing plan to construct rail lines to all of these factories to increase the
23

availability of the product and reduction of the cost of product through reduce cost
of transportation. This rail line will also serve for the mass transportation of humans
and other goods and services in interstate basis nation-wide hence reducing cost of
other products in the country and alternative for human transport.
Other CSR includes construction of school blocks, bore holes, roads and
electrification in host communities.[6]

8.0 CONCLUSION
The rising investment in infrastructure in developing countries of the world
like Nigeria had led to an increase in the demand for cement.
Nigeria cement industry estimated value grows from about 26 billion in 2004
to 134 billion in 2008. Statistics has shown that Nigeria has the largest
demand for cement in Sub-Saharan Africa and about 95% of the inputs for
cement production are sourced for locally.
The Dangote group is by far the biggest player in Nigerian cement
production; others are the Lafarge WAPCO which dominates the south-west
market, Ashaka control sales in the northern region.
The Dangote Cement company has witnessed appreciable growth in the
cement industry which raised its share capital to about 20% but has not been
able to cover the gap of consumption of cement in Nigeria.
The consumption of cement in Nigeria is determined by factors influencing
the level of housing and industrial constructions, irrigation projects, roads,
laying of water supply pipes, drainage pipes, establishment of new
universities by Federal government and private individuals. Growth in
population and level of urbanization in major cities like what we are
currently experiencing In Lagos, Port Harcourt, Benin are also factors that
confirm the imminent demands for cement in Nigeria and other parts of
Africa. All these including the supply gap of cement in Nigeria show that the
future investments in Nigeria Cement industry will be a viable venture.
Investigation has shown that road transportation of cement with trucks
beyond 200km is not economically viable for movement of cement within the
24

country. So we implore the federal government to fast track construction of

new railways and rehabilitation of the existing ones and provision of many
wagons for transportation of cement within the country. These may relax the
pressure on price of cement.

9.0 Recommendations
Based on this study, the following recommendations are made:
1. Government should develop an incentive system to encourage entrepreneurs to invest in
more foundries, forges, machine shops, etc., as these provide inputs to large firms and are
the "missing link" in the Nigerian industrial sector.
2. The government and the cement manufacturers should together make efforts to establish
local sourcing of gypsum.
3. The government and the cement manufacturers should together make efforts to establish
rail lines for cost effective transportation of raw materials and products
4. Government should provide a dynamic link between national research and development
institutions and industry, thus ensuring a sustained generation of technical change.
5. Government through private partnership should supply constant power .

25

References

1.Article written by Heather Wansbrough from the article in the previous edition by G.
Slocombe (Tikipunga High School) and D. Gallop (Wilsons (N.Z.) Portland Cement Ltd.
with advice from Martyn Compton (Golden Bay Cement), Murray Mackenzie (Milburn New
Zealand Ltd.) and Tim Mackay (The Cement and Concrete Association of New Zealand) and
with reference to: 100 years helping build a nation; Milburn Cement; 1988
and Bogue, Robert Herman; The Chemistry of Portland Cement (2nd. edition); Reinhold
Publishing Corporation; 1955)
2.

The Manufacture of Portland Cement, The Cement and Concrete Association of New
Zealand; 1989
3. Mr. G. Jayaraman. Technological Trends In Cement Industry-Energy And
Environmental Impact
4. Esubiyi, Chapter 18. Technical Change in the Nigerian Cement Industry

5. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/social_responsibility.
6

Dangote Spends #15.5bn on Social Responsility, http;//nnn.com.ng/?p=3693

Lea, F. M.; The Chemistry of Cement and Concrete (3rd edition); Edward Arnold
(Publishers) Ltd.; 1970
26

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