The severe ecological environment and frequent environmental pollution incidents reveal the strategic importance and practical urgency of strengthening ecological civilization construction. The massive stock of construction machinery is facing increasingly severe environmental pressure.

It is understood that of the more than 100 million tons of diesel consumed nationwide each year, about 20% is used for various types of non-road mobile machinery, and construction machinery is a major energy consumer among them. Chinese construction machinery enterprises are taking precautionary measures and have already achieved some results in emission control. A batch of engines meeting National III or even National IV emission standards has begun to be applied to construction machinery products, and new energy represented by LNG has also been recognized in some market segments of construction machinery. In fact, beyond emission control, construction machinery represented by concrete machinery has opened up new directions for environmental protection through exploration in construction processes and raw materials.

The trend of LNG energy substitution is fully evident

China's existing exhaust emission standards are mainly divided into motor vehicle emission standards and non-road mobile machinery emission standards. Products such as concrete mixer trucks and truck-mounted cranes equipped with automobile chassis control exhaust emissions according to motor vehicle emission standards. Currently, the National III emission standard implemented nationwide since July 1, 2007 is in effect, and the National IV emission standard will be implemented starting January 1, 2015. Other construction machinery products control exhaust emissions according to non-road mobile machinery emission standards. Currently, the National II standard implemented since October 1, 2009 is in effect, and the National III standard will be implemented starting October 1, 2014.

For construction machinery enterprises, upgrading engine exhaust emissions is already urgent. In addition to upgrading traditional diesel engines, many enterprises have also made new energy products represented by LNG a focus of research and development. In 2010, XCMG launched China's first LW500K-LNG natural gas loader; in 2013, the first excavator using LNG as fuel rolled off the production line at Sany Heavy Machinery's Lingang Industrial Park in Shanghai; in early 2014, the world's first LNG-powered grader was successfully developed by XCMG Group... It can be said that LNG construction machinery products have shown a prairie fire momentum. With advantages in economy and environmental protection, the trend of LNG energy substitution is already very obvious.

Another important power source for machinery products—electric power—has received unprecedented attention in the automotive field, especially after the emergence of Tesla. However, at present, there are not many products using electric power in the construction machinery field. Apart from small electric construction machinery produced by some manufacturers, most electric construction machinery is modified for special industrial and mining applications such as mines or tunnels. Although electric power as a power source can greatly reduce energy consumption and is more conducive to environmental protection, its inherent disadvantage in mobility severely restricts the application of electric power in the construction machinery field. Therefore, at present, the main direction for promoting energy conservation and environmental protection in construction machinery products from the perspective of power will be the application of LNG.

Some enterprises that have relatively mature exploration in the application of LNG products are also thinking about how to attempt energy conservation and environmental protection from a broader perspective. In this regard, concrete machinery manufacturers have undoubtedly taken the lead. Some enterprises have made beneficial attempts at energy conservation and environmental protection from the perspectives of construction processes and raw materials. Sany Heavy Industry's A8 Mortar Master and Zoomlion's "Golden Sand" high-quality manufactured sand system solution are undoubtedly outstanding among them.

Improving construction processes: Sany A8 Mortar Master

Some people say that China is one large construction site, with construction going on everywhere. But on this "large construction site," relatively backward on-site mixing of concrete is quite common. On-site mixing of concrete not only causes huge waste but also brings serious noise and dust pollution. Thus ready-mixed mortar emerged, and the appearance of Sany A8 Mortar Master can be called a revolution in the ready-mixed mortar field.

As early as 2007, the state issued the "Notice on Prohibiting On-site Mortar Mixing in Certain Cities within a Time Limit" to reduce environmental pollution such as dust and noise caused by on-site mortar mixing. In January 2013, the "Notice of the General Office of the State Council on Forwarding the Green Building Action Plan of the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development" was issued, explicitly requiring "vigorously developing green building materials, promoting the application of bulk cement, ready-mixed concrete, and ready-mixed mortar, and advancing building industrialization."

The launch of Sany A8 Mortar Master changed the previous manual operation model and realized enclosed, mechanized construction throughout the entire mortar process from sand screening to wall application, greatly reducing dust and noise pollution, reducing the consumption of building materials and energy, and achieving truly green environmental protection. This technology has received authoritative certification from the National Center for Quality Supervision and Inspection of Building Engineering.

According to calculations by authoritative institutions, after using Sany A8 Mortar Master, ready-mixed mortar can reduce dust emissions by 0.3 milligrams per cubic meter; at the same time, A8 can separate mortar production from construction, reducing noise by an average of 10 decibels and greatly reducing raw material waste in the mortar production process (saving 4% cement and 5% sand).

From an environmental perspective, A8's effects do not need excessive proof, and its cooperation with Greenland Group also shows that A8 has been recognized by high-quality customers. Whether A8 will change construction models in the future is still too early to tell, but at least it has achieved remarkable results in the field of energy conservation and environmental protection.

Improving raw materials: Zoomlion "Golden Sand"

China's concrete consumption is close to 60% of the world's annual output. As one of the most important raw materials for concrete, sand and gravel aggregate are consumed in huge quantities, with an annual output scale of more than 10 billion tons and an industry scale of more than 500 billion yuan. However, sand and gravel aggregate not only face increasingly scarce resources, soaring prices, and prominent supply-demand contradictions, but are also criticized by industry experts as a bottleneck restricting technological progress and the culprit affecting concrete quality. The public widely criticizes it for damaging the environment, trampling on people's livelihoods, and seriously affecting and challenging ecology and resources.

Zoomlion's high-quality manufactured sand system solution launched this year—"Golden Sand"—effectively solves the problem of sand and gravel aggregate shortages. It turns mining waste rock, urban construction waste, and other materials into valuable resources to produce higher-quality manufactured sand, while also directly reducing the amount of cement used in concrete mixing.

Because "Golden Sand" adopts a dry-process sand-making technology, compared with traditional wet-process sand making, it can effectively utilize stone powder and replace part of the cement. Because it adopts a tower structure, the main tower covers an area of less than 100 square meters, only one-third that of a flat-type sand production line, while energy-saving effects are 25% higher than flat-type lines. It is particularly suitable for the production land environment of commercial concrete enterprises and dry-mixed mortar enterprises.

As "corporate citizens" with a sense of social responsibility, many construction machinery enterprises have already taken action to promote energy conservation and environmental protection. With the application of new technologies and new processes, the construction machinery industry will contribute new strength to environmental protection.