Plastic roads – An innovative idea |Construction steps, Pros and Cons.

Nowadays the disposal of plastic wastes has become a major problem in our day to day life. Each day an uncontrollable amount of plastic wastes accumulates on the earth surface. This lead to the invention of plastic roads concept.

The plastic road is made fully plastic or by mixing plastic components with bitumen. The concept of the plastic road is first developed by Rajagopalan Vasudevan. Through this method, Plastics are reused and plastic waste disposal are reduced. These are entirely different from standard roads.

plastic waste
plastic waste

These roads have heavy damage resistance. The construction time is also less. The plastic roads use the hollow space between them for electricity, piping etc. They provide good resistance to rainwater and water stagnation.

Construction of Plastic roads

The construction of plastic roads is easy and economic. The substances like Polyethylene, Ethylene-vinyl acetate, etc adding to the bitumen enhances the properties of plastic road. This increases the life span of the roads.

Addition of plastic to the bitumen increases the flexibility, durability and strength of the road. Plastic has good binding property. So the quantity of bitumen can be reduced. The plastic components make the pavement stronger when compared to conventional pavements.

The construction method of plastic roads are easier and faster. In India, More than 100,000 kilometre are constructed using plastics. For the construction of plastic roads, there are mainly five steps in the construction of plastic roads. They are

  1. Segregation
  2. Cleaning Process
  3. Shredding Process
  4. Mixing Process
  5. Laying

Also Read : Components of a road – Elements and functions.

Components of Plastic road

The construction of plastic road uses the following component

  • Waste plastics
  • Aggregate – 20mm, 10mm
  • Bitumen – 60, 70,80,100 grade

Construction Method of Plastic roads

  • The plastic wastes are collected and sorted.
  • After sorting, the materials are cleaned, dried and shredded by using a shredding machine. The size of the plastics materials is between 2.36 mm to 4.75 mm.
  • The plastic materials and bitumen are heated at a temperature of 160-degree Celsius for acquiring good binding and to prevent weak bonding and is transferred into the mixing chamber.
  • The shredded plastic is uniformly coated over the aggregate mix in the mixing chamber.
  • For laying the bitumen mixed plastic aggregate rollers are used.
Plastic road construction
Plastic road construction

Difference between Plastic roads and Bitumen roads

The plastic roads are one of the best alternative of conventional roads. There are many difference between them in terms strength, durability etc. Few differences are listed below.

PLASTIC ROADBITUMEN ROAD
The tensile strength is highThe tensile strength is less
Less durabilityMore durable
Life span is up to 10 yearsLife span is 4 to 5 years
penitration of rain water is lesspenitration of rain water is more
Wear and tear is lessWear and tear is high
Plastic road are hollow and less weight.Bitumen road is heavy and solid
Construction cost is high while maintenance cost is lessConstruction cost is less while maintenance cost is high
Components of a road

Advantages of Plastic roads

  • Have good tensile strength.
  • It has a longer life span.
  • Less resistance to climatic condition.
  • No potholes
  • Low maintenance
  • Resistance to water stagnation.
  • Increases binding and bonding of mix.
  • No effect of radiation like UV rays

Plastic road – Disadvantages

  • The cleaning process of plastic is one of the major disadvantages. Because it contains toxic substances.
  • During the melting of plastic, the structural weakness may occur and causes premature failure.
  • The presence of chlorine will release lethal gas during the laying process.
  • The construction cost is high.
  • The water penetration is restricted, so the groundwater table is affected.

Conclusion

The idea of using plastic in pavements will reduce the tremendous amount of waste plastics on the earth. Plastic is harmful as well as convenient. So this should be adopted in every city as it is environmental friendly and more economic.

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