Forecasting environmental and social benefits of adopting cleaner technologies in Indian brick manufacturing industry

Abstract

Embodied carbon of new buildings can be effectively reduced by improving the manufacturing processes for energy intensive raw materials such as bricks and cement. Indian brick manufacturing industry is a major source of air pollution and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. This sector uses coal as a primary fuel in nearly 150,000 brick kilns, majority of which are based on energy in-efficient, fixed chimney bull-trench kiln (FCBTK) technology. Annually, the brick making in India consumes nearly 60 million tons of coal, produces almost 250 billion bricks and emits more than 150 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other GHG emissions. The pollutants produced include carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur oxides (SOx), nitrogen oxides (NOx), particulate matter (PM), methane (CH4), non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOC). This study provides the first comprehensive long-term (2020–2050) assessment of Indian brick kiln sector by forecasting the annual fuel demand, GHG emissions, pollutants formations and annual externality cost borne by the community. A Low Emissions Analysis Platform (LEAP) software based bottom-up simulation model has been developed for performing the assessment. Business as usual (BAU) and four alternative scenarios comprising of cleaner kiln technologies are evaluated. These technologies include zig zag kiln (ZZK), vertical shaft brick kiln (VSBK) and tunnel kiln (TK). Values for emission factors for pollutants, energy intensities of kilns, and social costs of pollutants are taken from the literature. Our results show that VSBK is the most energy efficient and environmentally friendly technology, closely followed by ZZK. For the year 2050, ZZK can save up to 16 billion dollars in externality costs and reduce coal demand by approximately 260 million tons. ZZK is not only a cleaner technology, but also has significant resemblance with conventional FCBTK technology which can be easily retrofitted to ZZK. The government and other stakeholders should promote ZZK adoption and develop suitable policy and financial instruments to address barriers to transition.