A few years ago, the European company VolkerWessels, based in the Netherlands, proposed building highways from recycled plastic. According to representatives of the company, the new technology will reduce construction costs and increase the durability of highways.
I didn't find information on how much weight this road can withstand (who knows?), But if a section breaks, I think that a replacement and a hole will be a decent problem.
Well, again, over the years we have not seen the development of this technology. What are the bottlenecks here?
But here are more details about such a road …
The roads will consist of separate hollow sections connected to each other. Recycled plastic, resistant to corrosion and weathering, is able to withstand temperatures from minus 40 to plus 80 degrees Celsius. The service life of such a coating can be approximately three times longer than that of an asphalt one. The absence of the need for constant repairs will reduce the number of traffic jams.
Another advantage of the plastic road is its ease of installation in sandy and depleted soil. In addition, hollow recesses inside the panels can serve as drainage points, as well as for laying pipes and cables.
“The potential of our concept is very great. In the future, we expect to involve new partners in the development, as well as plastic processing enterprises, which will contribute to the development of the entire industry,”said VolkerWessels.
Promotional video:
The only drawback of a plastic road is that it can be slippery when it rains. In addition, the construction of such roads will take weeks, not months. The plastic road is light, which reduces pressure on the ground, and is hollow, which provides quick access to underground utilities.
At the moment, the municipality of the city of Rotterdam is interested in the technology of creating plastic roads.
According to VolkerWessels, the ocean, which has accumulated a huge amount of plastic waste, will become the supplier of material for the production of PlasticRoad road blocks. In addition to cleaning the environment, if widely adopted, this technology will also reduce harmful emissions.
By the way, asphalt accounts for 2% of all carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere by the global transport system.
The possibility of testing "plastic" roads in real conditions is being considered by the authorities of Rotterdam, on whose order the project was developed. Most likely, a working prototype of PlasticRoad will be built in a local “street laboratory” within three years.