Guidebook for Using the Tool BEST Cement: Benchmarking and Energy Savings Tool for the Cement Industry Page: 3 of 100

                                
1. Methodology Overview

The Benchmarking and Energy Savings Tool (BEST) Cement is a process-based tool
based on commercially available efficiency technologies used anywhere in the world
applicable to the cement industry. This version has been designed for use in China. No
actual cement facility with every single efficiency measure included in the benchmark
will likely exist; however, the benchmark sets a reasonable standard by which to compare
for plants striving to be the best. The energy consumption of the benchmark facility
differs due to differences in processing at a given cement facility. The tool accounts for
most of these variables and allows the user to adapt the model to operational variables
specific for his/her cement facility. Figure 1 shows the boundaries included in a plant
modeled by BEST Cement.
Figure 1: Boundary conditions for BEST Cement
Preparing Additives
(gypsum, fly ash, etc.)
I.I
I                     I
j  Quarrying &  ;
I Mining Materials  IPreparing Fuels             Drying Additives
I   (optional)  I                      I                        I
IIII                                 II
IIII                                 II
raw materials       i     fuels                    dried      I
..... .  . .  .                      ;additive.
Raw Materials  Raw      Clinker Making          Finish Grinding
'Preparation   meal                     cikrcmn
Packaging and
Transport
In order to model the benchmark, i.e., the most energy efficient cement facility, so that it
represents a facility similar to the user's cement facility, the user is first required to input
production variables in the input sheet (see Section 6 for more information on how to
input variables). These variables allow the tool to estimate a benchmark facility that is
similar to the user's cement plant, giving a better picture of the potential for that
particular facility, rather than benchmarking against a generic one.
The input variables required include the following:
.  the amount of raw materials used in tonnes per year (limestone, gypsum, clay
minerals, iron ore, blast furnace slag, fly ash, slag from other industries, natural
pozzolans, limestone powder (used post-clinker stage), municipal wastes and
others); the amount of raw materials that are preblended (prehomogenized and
proportioned) and crushed (in tonnes per year);
.  the amount of additives that are dried and ground (in tonnes per year);

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