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Utilization of Plastic Waste in Interlocking Paver Blocks for Sustainable Pavement Construction
Summary
Researchers found a way to turn plastic waste into strong concrete blocks for roads and walkways by mixing shredded plastic pieces with regular concrete ingredients. The plastic-concrete blocks were just as strong as normal concrete blocks, offering a promising solution to reduce the mountains of plastic waste that pollute our environment. This approach could help tackle two major problems at once: getting rid of plastic trash that can break down into harmful microplastics, and reducing the need to mine natural materials for construction.
The rapid growth in plastic consumption and the resulting accumulation of nonbiodegradable waste have created serious environmental and disposal challenges worldwide.Conventional waste management practices such as landfilling and incineration are insufficient and environmentally harmful.At the same time, the construction industry consumes large quantities of natural aggregates and sand, leading to depletion of natural resources.This study investigates the feasibility of utilizing shredded plastic waste as a partial replacement of fine aggregate in interlocking concrete paver blocks for sustainable pavement construction.M50 grade concrete was designed as per IS 10262:2019 with a mix proportion of 1:1.47:3.04 and water-cement ratio of 0.36.Ten percent of natural sand was replaced with shredded plastic flakes (2-6 mm size).The paver blocks were cast, vibrated, demolded after 24 hours, and water cured for 7, 14, and 28 days.Performance evaluation was carried out through compressive strength and water absorption tests in accordance with IS 15658 standards.The experimental results showed an average compressive strength of 46.67 kN at 28 days and water absorption values between 5.27% and 7.53%, which are within