The technical deliberations at the Conference will cover the whole spectrum, from geological exploration/extraction of limestone to manufacture and utilisation of cement & building materials and concrete & it`s durability with focus on latest innovations in technology. The areas needing special attention in the present context have been identified as follows:
- Advances in cement chemistry
- Optimization of raw mix design
- Use of mineralisers, fluxes and activators
- Low energy and special cements
- Hydration studies of cementitious systems
- Mineral admixtures
- Binary and ternary blended cements
- Composite and Portland limestone cements
- Calcined clay based cements
- Green cement / Eco-cement
- Optimum plant design
- Advances in cement plant machinery
- Packaging, handling and transportation of cement including bulk systems
- Technology upgradation / modernization /debottlenecking / re-engineering
- Financial restructuring and plant rejuvenation
- Ultra-high capacity cement kiln and mill systems
- Carbon Capture techniques
- Mineral carbonisation of industrial products
- Co2 utilization in fresh concrete
- Transportation and storage of Co2
- Total productivity enhancement and cost reduction techniques
- Optimization of plant operations and trouble shooting
- Refractory engineering practices and recent advances
- Condition monitoring techniques
- Technical audit, plant maintenance and benchmarking
- Advances in instrumentation and process automation
- Supply chain management
- Use of alternate fuels including MSW, WDF, bio-fuels etc.
- Use of low-grade fuels
- Co-processing of hazardous wastes in cement kiln
- Alternate raw materials including industrial wastes / by-products
- Logistics & transportation issues
- Health & safety aspects
- Concrete of low permeability / high electrical resistivity
- Use of stainless steel and composite reinforcement
- High strength concrete, High performance concrete, Ultra-high strength concrete
- Improvement of performance by use of fibre reinforcement in concrete
- Durability of concrete in aggressive environment
- Chemical admixtures, Corrosion inhibitors and Coatings
- Additions for enhanced durability of concrete - Blast furnace slag, fly ash, silica fume, metakaolin and other
- Supplementary Cementitious Materials (SCMs) or Pozzolanas
- Testing for durability
- Special concretes such as pervious concrete, plastic
- concrete and controlled low strength concrete
- Geopolymer Concrete – Production, use and design aspects
- Quality control, quality assurance & technical audit of concrete construction
- Use of C&D waste, fly ash, slags and bottom ash as aggregate
- Use of other waste-based materials, sintered and manufactured aggregates, fly ash bricks, Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC)
- Concrete pavements
- Newer construction technologies
- Precast concrete technology
- High volume fly ash concrete (HVFAC)
- Energy efficient technologies and operations
- Energy audit and management
- Advances in combustion systems
- New and renewable sources of energy
- Waste heat recovery and co-generation of power
- Role of regulatory provisions in energy conservation
- Energy efficient buildings and structures
- Planning for durability and Performance based design
- Structural design using high strength / ultra-high strength concrete
- Structural design using fibres / fibre composites reinforced concrete
- Service life design (prediction) / residual life assessment
- Chloride ingress and chloride induced corrosion
- Carbonation and carbonation induced corrosion
- Initiation and propagation of corrosion of steel rebars
- Alkali aggregate reactions
- Sulphate attack (formation of Ettringite, Thaumasite, Gypsum etc.)
- Delayed Ettringite formation
- Freeze / thaw attack
- Effect of cracks
- Lime, fly ash, clay & gypsum based materials
- Waste based binders / cementitious materials
- Non-destructive testing of concrete
- Repair systems
- Applications of membrane & coatings
- Chloride removal techniques
- Re-alkalization techniques
- Cathodic protection of steel reinforcement
- Use of fibre wrapping
- Water proofing
- Seismic retrofitting
- External pre-stressing
- Marketing research and analysis
- Innovative marketing practices
- National and International Standards
- HRD needs and support systems for cement and construction industries
- New training tools
- Skill upgradation
- Construction project management
- Construction practices with respect to speed economy & quality
- Ready mixed concrete
- Self-compacting concrete, concrete rheology and pumpability
- Life cycle assessment in cement manufacture
- Carbon footprint
- Water footprint
- EIA/ EMPstudies in cement and construction sectors.
- Rehabilitation of limestone mines
- Voluntary environmental initiatives
- Safety, Health and Environment
- Environmental improvement through modern technologies in cement and construction industries
- Sustainable development initiatives
- Role of regulatory provisions for environment improvement and sustainable development
- Leaching of heavy metals in cement and concrete systems
- NO SO control – Primary & Secondary measures x 2
- Dust control measures
- Climate change implications and initiatives by cement and construction industries Energy efficient materials
- Expanding the horizon of cement use
- Use of Drones for assessment of Concrete Structures
- 3D Printing of Concrete Structures, materials etc
- Use of polymers and resins with cementitious systems
- Technology trends and forecasts
- Green technologies and practices for sustainable growth
- CSR initiatives
- Novel chemical admixture
- Advanced analytical techniques
- Geopolymer binders
- Nano technology application in cement and concrete
