Rubber from discarded tires can replace 100% of conventional aggregates used in manufacturing concrete. This is what engineers at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, have discovered. The concrete made with the material meets building codes and promises to boost the circular economy.
This “greener concrete” uses rubber from discarded tires instead of gravel and crushed stone. According to the team that developed the material, the new concrete is lighter and promises to significantly reduce manufacturing and transportation costs.
Small amounts of tire rubber particles are already used to replace these aggregates, but this is the first time all aggregates have been replaced with rubber without compromising the quality of the concrete.
The study was published in the journal Resources, Conservation and Recycling. Lead author Dr. Mohammad Momeen Ul Islam, a researcher at RMIT University's School of Engineering, said the findings debunked a popular theory about what could be achieved with recycled rubber particles in concrete.
“We have demonstrated with our precise molding method that this decades-long perceived limitation on using large amounts of coarse rubber particles in concrete can now be overcome,” Islam said. “The technique involves using newly designed casting molds to compress the coarse rubber aggregate in fresh concrete, which improves the performance of the building material.”
Greener, Cheaper, and Lighter Building Materials
Study co-author and team leader Professor Jie Li said this manufacturing process brings both environmental and economic benefits. “Since the majority of typical concrete is coarse aggregate, replacing all of it with used tire rubber can significantly reduce the consumption of natural resources and also address the major environmental challenge of what to do with end-of-life tires,” he said.
Another advantage of the concrete developed by the researchers is the reduction in manufacturing and transportation costs. “This would benefit a range of developments, including low-cost housing projects in rural and remote areas of Australia and other countries around the world,” Li explains.
Next Steps
According to Islam, the team's manufacturing process can be cost-effectively scaled up in a precast concrete industrial environment in Australia and abroad. Following successful workshop testing, the team is now looking into reinforcing the concrete to see how it performs in structural elements.
This article is part of the ArchDaily Topics: The Future of Construction Materials. Every month we explore a specific topic in-depth through articles, interviews, news, and projects. Learn more about ArchDaily Topics. As always, at ArchDaily we welcome the contributions of our readers; if you want to submit an article or project, please contact us.
Via CicloVivo.
This article was written by Natasha Olsen. The translation is powered by AI.
