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Innovation in pavement technology on show

By intouch * posted 18-10-2018 08:32

  

Hume City Council in Victoria partnered with Downer Group and resource recovery and recycling companies Close the Loop and RED Group to construct Australia’s first road utilising a combination of soft plastics and glass to construct a road in and around Rayfield Avenue, Craigieburn, located in Melbourne’s north.


The Australian-first road construction trial diverted the equivalent of 200,000 shopping bags and 63,000 glass bottles into asphalt. Along with soft plastics and glass, toner from more than 4,500 used printer cartridges and 50 tonnes of recycled asphalt were also repurposed to create 250 tonnes of the asphalt used.

The innovation demonstrates the economic, social and environmental value for products that would likely end up in landfill, stockpiled, or as a pollutant in our natural environments. Repurposing soft plastics and glass into asphalt for road construction creates a sustainable, cost-effective solution that has improved performance characteristics and creates important markets for two challenging recycled materials.

More importantly, utilising soft plastics and glass in road construction proves that we can continue to set new benchmarks in repurposing and recycling waste materials into new streams of use.

Jerry Tan, the National Manager Research and Development from Downer Group, and representatives from Hume City Council will speak in detail about the use of recycled materials in asphalt and bituminous products at the National Local Roads and Transport Congress next month. Jerry overseas the Blended Product Division and R&D facility for Downer Group and has more than 8 years’ experience with the design and development of asphalt and bituminous products, including asphalt design for airfields and racetracks and recent innovations such as the 99% Recycled Asphalt and Plastiphalt. 

The National Local Roads and Transport Congress will be held in Alice Springs from 20-22 November 2018.

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