Upcycling expanded polyethylene waste for novel composite materials: Physico-mechanical, hygrothermal and life cycle assessment

Recycling plastic waste is a major challenge today, but it also offers an opportunity to create sustainable building products and promote a circular economy in construction. The aim of this article is to evaluate a new lightweight plaster composite incorporating expanded polyethylene (EPE) packaging...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Ferrández Vega, Daniel, Zaragoza Benzal, Alicia, Barrak, E., Santos, P., Rodrigues, C.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Consejo General de la Arquitectura Técnica de España (CGATE)
Repositorio:RIARTE
OAI Identifier:oai:www.riarte.es:20.500.12251/3705
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12251/3705
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rineng.2024.103535
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Material sostenible
Reciclaje - Construcción
Poliestireno expandido (EPS)
Material compuesto
Residuos poliméricos
Tabiquería autoportante
Ensayos (propiedades o materiales)
Permeabilidad al vapor de agua
Conductividad térmica
Prefabricados
3312.08 Propiedades de Los Materiales
3313.04 Material de Construcción
2211.02 Materiales Compuestos
3312.09 Resistencia de Materiales
3312.12 Ensayo de Materiales
3305.24 Construcciones Prefabricadas
2304.20 Poliestireno
3308.02 Residuos Industriales
3308.07 Eliminación de Residuos
Descripción
Sumario:Recycling plastic waste is a major challenge today, but it also offers an opportunity to create sustainable building products and promote a circular economy in construction. The aim of this article is to evaluate a new lightweight plaster composite incorporating expanded polyethylene (EPE) packaging waste for lightweight steel frame (LSF) partition walls. Mechanical and hygrothermal characterization and environmental life cycle assessment are carried out on these composites with a replacement of up to 30% of the original raw material by volume. The results show that the alternative plaster has 21.7% grater flexural strength in plates than required by standards. In addition, the reduced water vapour permeability of these materials makes them more resistant to damage in high humidity environments. On the other hand, the lightened composites have 43.9% lower thermal conductivity than the reference material, increasing the thermal resistance of LSF partition walls by 20.3%. Finally, cradle-to-gate global warming potential is reduced by up to 30% compared with the 100% virgin EPE. These results are encouraging and present a significant opportunity to advance the development of sustainable novel prefabricated modular building products.