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Engineering and Technology OPEN ACCESS

Valorising Gas-Processing Sulfur in Concrete Production: A Techno-Economic and Probabilistic Life-Cycle Assessment of Sulfur Concrete in Uzbekistan

Nelyufar Umarovna Dadabaeva
Senior Lecturer, Department of Transport Economics, Tashkent State Transport University, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
DOI Crossref DOI 10.37547/tajet/Volume08Issue09-07
tajet 2026
VOL. 8 / NO. 09 SEPTEMBER
FULL TEXT PP. 116-124
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VOLUME 8
ISSUE 09
YEAR 2026
PAGES 116-124
RESEARCH OVERVIEW

Abstract

Concrete production in Uzbekistan relies almost entirely on Portland cement, whose cost and carbon intensity are rising, while the country’s gas-processing plants generate a large surplus of elemental sulfur that is sold at very low prices or exported over long distances. This study evaluates whether this by-product can be turned into an economically competitive construction material by replacing Portland cement concrete with modified sulfur concrete in precast elements for aggressive environments. A techno-economic model was developed for 1 m³ of concrete of comparable strength (class B40 Portland cement concrete versus modified sulfur concrete), covering materials, process energy, moulds, CO₂ emissions and a 50-year life-cycle cost including replacements. Input prices reflect 2026 conditions in Uzbekistan, and uncertainty in 18 parameters was propagated by Monte Carlo simulation with 10,000 runs, complemented by one-at-a-time sensitivity and break-even analysis. In the base case the initial cost of sulfur concrete (516.6 thousand UZS/m³) is 1.6% lower than that of Portland cement concrete (525.0 thousand UZS/m³), and its CO₂ emissions are 85% lower (60.6 versus 413.6 kg/m³). Under uncertainty, sulfur concrete is cheaper at the production stage in only 21% of runs, because the cost of the polymeric modifier dominates its binder cost, but it has a lower life-cycle cost in 87.6% of runs, with a mean saving of 133.8 thousand UZS/m³ (10.1%). Break-even occurs at a modifier price of about 20.8 thousand UZS/kg or a sulfur price of about 325 UZS/kg. Channelling 100 thousand tonnes of sulfur per year into concrete would displace about 131 thousand tonnes of cement and avoid about 103 thousand tonnes of CO₂ annually. Sulfur concrete is therefore a promising niche technology whose competitiveness depends mainly on low-cost modifiers and on pricing of carbon emissions.

RESEARCH TOPICS

Keywords

Sulfur concrete concrete production economics by-product valorisation

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