Valorization and recycling of packaging belts and post-consumer PET bottles in the manufacture of sand concrete

Abstract

The valorization of local by-products in the manufacture of a new range of sand concrete and the improvement of their properties, will lead to seek an arrangement between performance and cost in order to achieve a resistant material. Waste recycling affects two very important affect namely the environmental impact and the economic impact. The main objective of our work is to contribute to optimize the formulation of sand concrete as part of the recovery of waste, which is harmful to the environment given its bulky and unattractive nature, it is waste plastic. Most PET bottles become waste after use, causing environmental problems. To solve this problem, a method for recycling PET bottles as fibers to strengthen concrete is proposed. Two types of plastic waste are added to sand concrete; the first concerns the recycling of post-consumer bottles in PET, in the form of polyester fiber supplied by the company RET-PLAST and the second type concerns the packaging belts made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The properties in the fresh state (workability and density) and in the hardened state (compressive strength, tensile strength and water absorption) of the various produced concretes are analyzed and compared against their respective controls. From the experimental results, it can be concluded that the reinforcement of the cement matrix with PET fibers with a rate of 1% improves the mechanical properties of sand concrete as well as a remarkable decrease in its water absorption capacity.

Cellulose-based natural nanofibers for fresh produce packaging: current status, sustainability and future outlook

“…93,94 Despite being recycled more often than PET bottles, single-use glass bottles have a greater negative impact on the environment. 95,96 Despite being lightweight, effective, and providing adequate product protection, multilayer plastic packaging is typically not recyclable. 97 Fig.…”

Optimizing Polymer-Stabilized Raw Earth Composites with Plant Fibers Reinforcement for Historic Building Rehabilitation

“…Biskri Y et al [9] contributed to optimizing the formulation of the sand-based cementitious composite as part of the recovery of plastic waste extracted from polyethylene terephthalate bottles and packaging tapes. The experimental results of this study show that reinforcing the cement matrix with PET fibers improves the physico-mechanical properties of the composite.…”

Effect of date palm and polypropylene fibers on the characteristics of self-compacting concretes: comparative study

“…Raw earth bricks reinforced with straw are an example. However, the transition from the traditional clay matrix to the cement matrix is relatively recent, yet plant fibers are locally available, renewable, less polluting [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] and require little energy for their transformation compared to synthetic fibers [8][9][10][11][12]. The reinforcement of mortars and concretes with fibers dates back to the beginning of the 19th century [13] and the use of vegetable fibers in these materials dates back to the seventies of the 19th century, when the first works aimed to replace asbestos fiber in the elements prefabricated [14].…”