Recently, Washington State University announced that a new research result developed by researchers at the university can solve the problem of rainwater runoff and solve high-tech waste utilization problems. WSU researchers confirmed the addition of recycled pavement materials for carbon fiber composites. Can significantly improve the permeability of rain.
The WSU explained that, unlike the non-permeable paving materials used in most current roads and parking lots, pervious concrete allows rainwater to freely penetrate and infiltrate into the ground. As people are increasingly concerned about flooding in urban areas, it is also out of rainwater. For runoff control, many cities have attempted to use permeable concrete in parking lots and non-traffic congested sections. However, due to the high porosity of the permeable paving materials, durability is slightly greater than that of traditional concrete paving materials used in main roads. difference.
According to WSU, the recycling method mentioned in the Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering published in March 2018 does not require very high energy consumption. The R&D team led by Karl Englund and Somayeh Nassiri uses mechanical grinding methods from Boeing. The carbon fiber composite material scraps recovered by the company are refined to the ideal size and shape, and added to the concrete. The addition of carbon fiber composite material significantly improves the durability and strength of the original infiltration concrete materials.
The researchers used a non-heating, low-cost grinding technique to treat the recycled carbon fiber composites into a reinforced phase. Instead of separating the fibers from the resin, they retained their original solidified form, allowing the original strength of the composite to be achieved. Make full use of. The composite material is dispersed in the paving material mixture to obtain a uniform strength.
Englund said: 'Because waste materials are used, we can't increase the cost to process the waste to obtain products. Therefore, the key to this technology is to reduce energy consumption and reduce production costs.'
Researchers are demonstrating the results of laboratory-scale research. At present, they are working on real-world pavement testing. They also work together with industry to jointly develop the entire industry chain.
Nassiri said: 'The laboratory research is mainly to improve the durability and strength of the infiltration paving materials. The next step will be how to make the product widely used and expand its scope of application.