South Africa’s first vertical shaft brick kiln

South Africa’s first vertical shaft brick kiln (VSBK), which boasts material energy savings, is being constructed at clay brick manufacturer Langkloof Bricks, in the Eastern Cape.

This article was edited by Edited by: Martin Zhuwakinyu of http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/

This news item was also published here: http://jbaynews.com/2011/03/12/local-brick-maker-uses-green-technology/

The technology transfer project is occurring in partnership with the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), together with its implementation partners, Swisscontact and Skat.

The kiln, being built by Langkloof Bricks at its factory located between Humansdorp and Jeffreys Bay, will be complete and commissioned in August this year.

The open-source technology kiln, which was originally used in Asia, is an environment-friendly project that reportedly satisfies all the criteria of sustainable development and complies with government’s call for a 33% reduction in South Africa’s carbon footprint by 2020.

Namakwa Stene owner and VSBK project initiator Kevin Fruin explains that the VSBK offers a solution that will reduce coal consumption by up to 50% and improve the energy efficiency of the brick-firing process as well as lead to a 50% reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

The VSBK process cuts the time of brick firing from eight weeks using the clamp method to just 24 hours. It also reduces particle matter, which causes most of the respiratory illnesses in the labour force, by 90%.

“The VSBK offers safer and healthier working conditions, as workers are not exposed to the elements because of the roof over the top of the kiln. This will result in improved labour efficiency. In addition, the technology for the VSBK requires specialist skills, which will increase worker knowledge,” he says.

The SDC has committed to the Clean Development Mechanism registration of the project, which hopes to result in 700 000 potential certified emission reduction credits, trans- lating into R960-million in foreign capital inflow over a ten-year period.

The final target is to have VSBKs firing 50% of the bricks produced in South Africa, which will mean a CO2 saving of 1,305-million tons a year.

All brickmakers in South Africa use some form of fossil fuel and account for 1,5% of South Africa’s coal consumption.

The VSBK will allow brickmakers to experi- ment with different fuel types more efficiently than clamp operations.