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Laboratory Hydraulic Conductivity Assessment of Recycled Crushed Concrete Aggregate and Plastic Mix Pavement Base
Summary
This study isn't about human health directly—it's civil engineering research testing whether recycled concrete and plastic waste (like HDPE and PP) can be mixed into road base material instead of dumped in landfills. Researchers found that adding a small amount of recycled plastic actually improved the material's drainage properties, which could make roads more durable and reduce plastic waste. Worth noting: this involves plastic used as solid structural material under roads, not something that breaks down into microplastics you'd encounter directly.
Depletion of natural aggregates is prompting the use of Recycled Crushed Concrete Aggregate (RCCA) as a sustainable alternative. Simultaneously, the global plastic waste crisis demands innovative recycling approaches to repurpose non-biodegradable waste. This study explores the potential of RCCA mixed with recycled plastic as a flexible pavement base material, emphasizing hydraulic properties and drainage performance. The experimental program evaluated the material properties, including particle size distribution, specific gravity, moisture-density relationship, and hydraulic conductivity for mixes containing 3% and 5% RCCA replacement with high-density polyethylene (HDPE) and polypropylene (PP), stabilized with 4%, 6%, and 8% cement. The results illustrated that RCCA-plastic mixed samples had higher hydraulic conductivity than 100% RCCA samples. The analysis revealed that a 3% HDPE replacement stabilized at 4% cement increased the hydraulic conductivity by three times. The findings demonstrate that RCCA modified with recycled plastics can improve drainage characteristics, indicating potential for use in sustainable pavement base applications.