The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility have recently introduced an energy efficient, smokeless brick-making technology to curb greenhouse gas emissions in Bangladesh, where the economy has been growing five to six percent annually for the past 15 years.
Designed to replace the current, highly pollutant technology, the new technique named Hoffman Kiln was originally developed in Germany, modified in China and remodeled to adapt to the Bangladeshi needs, resulting in an even more energy efficient and cost-effective kiln.
With a construction industry that grows faster than its GDP, Bangladesh has no other option except making the brick making technology efficient and eco-friendly," said Khondker Rahman, who manages UNDP's Improving Kiln Efficiency in the Brick Making Industry project.
In the booming construction industry spurred by Bangladesh's rapid urbanization, the brick making industry remains largely unregulated and unmonitored. Every year 8.6 billion, bricks are produced here, and the demand is rising steadily at about 5.28 percent per year.
More than 90 percent of the country's brick kilns use a 150-year old energy intensive and highly polluting technology, which is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the country: around 6 million tonnes of CO2 annually. With the existing annual growth rate, at this pace, emissions will rise to 8.7 million tonnes by 2014.
Now, with the new Hybrid Hoffman technology, a single kiln will produce 15 million bricks and cut carbon emission by 5,000 tonnes a year. If all existing kilns are replaced by this technology, it will bring down the emission rate considerably.
Most of the fuel mixed into the bricks in Hybrid Hoffman Kilns is completely burnt during firing, drastically reducing energy usage and production cost. Hot air is then directed into the tunnel from the annular kiln that dries green bricks and blocks greenhouse gas emission.
With a rising demand for bricks, every year 8.6 billion bricks are produced in the traditional highly pollutant manner -- with elevated production costs, poor labour conditions and inferior quality. In addition, 33 percent of kilns use firewood, which is a major cause of deforestation.
Thanks to the new technology, the Hybrid Hoffman Kiln will save energy and resources to help build a cleaner Bangladesh.
