Eco-Friendly Pavements Manufactured from Mixed Recycled Aggregates Obtained from Construction and Demolition Waste: An Industrial-Scale Validation

Materials (Basel). 2023 Dec 7;16(24):7544. doi: 10.3390/ma16247544.

Abstract

This study aimed to validate that laboratory-scale results could be commercially replicated when manufacturing marketable precast concrete. Construction and demolition waste (CDW) was separated into two (fine and coarse) recycled aggregates (RAs). Precast paver and kerb units were fabricated by partial or total substitution of natural aggregates (NAs) by RAs. The study involved the comprehensive characterisation of raw materials, including particle size distribution, mineral composition, and elemental composition. Paver blocks and kerbs manufactured with up to 50% RAs showed mechanical resistance (T = 3.7 ± 0.2 and B = 5.3 ± 0.6 MPa, respectively), water absorption between 5.3-5.7%, and abrasion resistance (approximately 20.2 mm), which met the standard requirements (UNE-EN 1340:2004 and UNE-EN 1338:2004). Furthermore, industrial-scale precast pavement units demonstrated strength and durability suitable for heavy traffic areas. A reduction of 13% in cement content could maintain the requirements with a partial RA substitution of 25%, offering economic and environmental benefits. Therefore, it is feasible at an industrial level to replace NAs with RAs, promoting durability and technological properties with a positive environmental impact and considerably reducing CO2 emissions by up to 65%. Overall, pavers with RAs manufactured at the laboratory scale met mechanical standards, and the kerb stones showed improvements in abrasion resistance. On an industrial scale, kerb stones and precast blocks with specific substitutions can meet strength, water absorption, and abrasion requirements, allowing a reduction in cement content.

Keywords: concrete kerb units; concrete paver blocks; construction and demolition waste; recycled aggregates; recycling.

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the Centre for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) to the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry, and Competitiveness (MINECO), by the project “Eco-efficient concrete urban paving from mixed recycled aggregates obtained from CDW” (Ref.: IDI-20180931) and by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities’ Research Agency “Valorisation of the wastes coming from the process for removing natural radionuclides in phosphogypsum leachates” (Ref.: PID2020-116461RA-C22).