A group of researchers has devised a new material to build roads and sidewalks by recovering millions of masks
A group of researchers has devised a new material to build roads and sidewalks by recovering millions of masks
Il coronavirus it caused, in addition to the health emergency, a new one waste emergency, linked to the use of disposable masks and disposable gloves. It is estimated that since the beginning of the pandemic to date, more than 50 billion masks have already been produced and that, of these, more than one and a half billion are destined to pollute the oceans around the world (READ ALSO: Over 1,5 billion disposable masks will end up in the oceans this year, according to a new report).
Le disposable masks they are difficult to recycle, both because they are composed of different materials and because they represent a potentially dangerous waste, therefore even when they are disposed of correctly, they accumulate in landfills or are incinerated, with negative effects on the environment. Look for a solution for recover the masks it is therefore fundamental and for this purpose a group of researchers from two Australian institutes, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and Melbourne Technical worked.
The team has in fact tested a new material for road paving, obtained by mixing disposable masks and recycled concrete from demolished buildings and construction waste. The researchers thus discovered that the addition of shredding masks allow a better aggregation of the concrete and allow to obtain a more flexible and resistant product thanasphalt.
The material allows you to recover three million masks for every kilometer of road built and to save over 90 tons of waste from landfills. The analysis also examined the costs associated with the production of this new material and the results revealed a saving equal to half compared to the cost of extracting virgin materials to which must be added the reduction in costs relating to the disposal of individual production devices.
The experimentation is still ongoing but according to the researchers i results are already exciting and could open the door to further research aimed at recovering masks and other personal protective equipment.
Fonte: Science of the Total Environment
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