José, Process Engineer, Cement

Hi José! Can you tell us something about yourself?

I was born in Nicaragua and moved to Stockholm when I was 13. I studied chemical engineering in Uppsala and moved to Gotland after graduating. Eight years ago, I started working at Heidelberg Materials (then Cementa) as a laboratory engineer. In 2018, I moved to the position of process engineer, which is my current position in the laboratory. 

What does your work involve?

My work as a process engineer involves microscopic analysis of cement clinker and quantitative XRD methods. For some time now, I have also been working on a PhD in the same field at Umeå University - an opportunity offered by Heidelberg Materials. The research is part of the CemZero project, which is investigating an innovative method for future cement production - the electrification of the process by using electrical plasma instead of today's fuel-driven combustion.

What is a typical day like for you?

I go through various samples and carry out analyses. Then I am involved in a number of projects and orders from the company's cement plants in Sweden and Norway. At the moment I'm working on the development of our XRD analyses. 

What is the best thing about your job?

The opportunity to be involved in development, to have a lot of responsibility for my work and to be involved in projects that make a difference. 

What are important qualities to be successful in your role?

Being outgoing and easy to work with, as the job is based on a lot of teamwork, but also being responsible and having an interest in industrial work.  

What is the best thing about working at Heidelberg Materials?

That "the little things you do" affect most of the cement used in infrastructure projects throughout Sweden. I also like that the company continues to develop its environmentally friendly factories and that you are always learning new things.

• A brief description of José's research:
• The research is part of the CemZero project, which is investigating an innovative method for future cement production - electrifying the process by using electrical plasma instead of today's fuel-fired combustion.
• Plasma electrification allows carbon dioxide to be captured without the need for a separate filtration system, for example with amine. However, this method means that the cement clinker (the main component of cement) is formed in the kiln under completely new conditions. These include a much higher temperature for a shorter period of time and changes in gas composition.
• José's work focuses on developing experimental models to help simulate the process with plasma, characterise the clinker products and develop methods to assess the reactivity of the clinker.
• An example of this research is a paper in which José presents a new method for observing the evolution of clinker minerals at high temperatures in the conventional process: Phase evolution and burnability of cement raw meal. The next step is to introduce the same atmosphere that is expected in the plasma process.
• The Slite plant also has a three-metre test kiln, called KilnZero, which will soon be equipped with plasma. This will give us additional information about the plasma and the materials, which José will then characterise and test for reactivity.