Internal fuel application for coal reduction in brick making

Coorganisers: ICIMOD, MinErgy, and FNBI

About the event

We have been partnering with MinErgy and the Federation of Nepal Brick Industries (FNBI) to showcase the internal fuel application (mixing fuel with clay while preparing green bricks) method in a brick kiln in the Kathmandu Valley.

Through this process, we will generate evidence on the exact emission reduction from this method and demonstrate this practice to a broader group comprising practitioners and government organisations to scale up this practice across Nepal.

We are organising this training under the framework of the Himalayan Resilience Enabling Action Programme (HI-REAP) funded by the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).

Objectives

The programme aims to:

• Build capacity of brick kiln entrepreneurs on internal fuel application in the brick-making process
• Generate evidence on emissions reduction from internal fuel application in the brick-making process

Expected participants

Participants from showcase kiln owners, FNBI’s technical research development committee members and province coordinators, and government officials from across Nepal will attend the demonstration of internal fuel application.

Contact person

• Bidya Banmali Pradhan, Sr. Atmospheric Environment Specialist, Action Area on Stimulating Actions for Clean Air, ICIMOD

Expected outcomes

The programme will help scale up internal fuel application practices in Nepal and across the region by generating evidence and building the capacity of partners in Nepal.

Background

The South Asian region has more than 150,000 brick kilns, producing over 310 billion bricks annually. Most of these kilns are traditional and make hand-moulded bricks through labour- and energy-intensive processes. Inefficient combustion in brick kilns results in high levels of emissions that affect the local environment and communities, and gradually impact regional air quality. Brick production is also a significant source of carbon dioxide, black carbon, and other short-lived climate pollutants such as particulate matter and sulphur dioxide. Almost half of the 1,300 brick kilns in Nepal have converted to the cleaner zig-zag technology, which induces air flow in a zig-zag pattern considerably improving fuel combustion and heat transfer.

The application of internal fuel in brick making is based on the principle that incorporating coal in clay while preparing green bricks can reduce 30-40% of external coal consumption and emissions. This application also increases the profitability of brick-making enterprises and can be integrated into the existing brick production system.

We have been working with our regional member countries in introducing and scaling up such practices that have a massive potential for reducing emissions from the brick sector.

Tentative agenda