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Including the fact that asphalt is generally mixed with tire rubber, therefore recycling old tires. Plastic is now also being added to asphalt to recycle when c

Including the fact that asphalt is generally mixed with tire rubber, therefore recycling old tires. Plastic is now also being added to asphalt to recycle when constructing roadways.

adwww 6y ago
I wonder where that recycled rubber goes as the road surface wears away...
- ehnto 6y ago
  It probably joins all the rubber coming off the tires, settling on or near the road and then washing into the waterways.
- petre 6y ago
  In the air as particulate pollution and then it's washed into the waterways.
ehnto 6y ago
Do the plastics get released during degradation or do they make up a more tightly bound part of the mixture?
- R0b0t1 6y ago
  Yes. It was a while ago, but I was linked to something describing how asphalt leeches chemicals into the surroundings.
- hammock 6y ago
  Uh, yeah. They use recycled tires in astroturf installations as well and there was an epidemic of soccer goalies getting some rare form of cancer due to diving in the "dirt" and getting exposed to the chemicals in it. Google Amy Griffin or read this https://www.ehhi.org/turf-cancer-stats.php https://www.ehhi.org/turf-cancer-stats.php
petre 6y ago
An Indian scientist named Rajagopalan Vasudevan developed and patented this process. It reduces the bitumen used and improves the quality of flexible pavements, resistace to wear and tear. I think this is a brilliant way to use some of the plastic waste. Also the patent is royality free. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_roads https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_roads
- kortex 6y ago
  This is brilliant. Asphalt mostly consists of polycyclics. Maltenes make up the continuous phase, and are typically alkane-modified resins. Compared to plastics, these are much shorter chains. They are also prone to UV degradation which causes brittlement, leading to road degradation. Asphalt is just nasty stuff. I'd love to see it get replaced with alkanes (polyethlene and polypropylene from plastic, polyisoprene from rubber)

Including the fact that asphalt is generally mixed with tire rubber, therefore recycling old tires. Plastic is now also being added to asphalt to recycle when constructing roadways.

adwww 6y ago

I wonder where that recycled rubber goes as the road surface wears away...

ehnto 6y ago
It probably joins all the rubber coming off the tires, settling on or near the road and then washing into the waterways.
petre 6y ago
In the air as particulate pollution and then it's washed into the waterways.

ehnto 6y ago

Do the plastics get released during degradation or do they make up a more tightly bound part of the mixture?

R0b0t1 6y ago
Yes. It was a while ago, but I was linked to something describing how asphalt leeches chemicals into the surroundings.
hammock 6y ago
Uh, yeah. They use recycled tires in astroturf installations as well and there was an epidemic of soccer goalies getting some rare form of cancer due to diving in the "dirt" and getting exposed to the chemicals in it. Google Amy Griffin or read this https://www.ehhi.org/turf-cancer-stats.php https://www.ehhi.org/turf-cancer-stats.php

petre 6y ago

An Indian scientist named Rajagopalan Vasudevan developed and patented this process. It reduces the bitumen used and improves the quality of flexible pavements, resistace to wear and tear. I think this is a brilliant way to use some of the plastic waste. Also the patent is royality free. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_roads https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_roads

kortex 6y ago
This is brilliant. Asphalt mostly consists of polycyclics. Maltenes make up the continuous phase, and are typically alkane-modified resins. Compared to plastics, these are much shorter chains. They are also prone to UV degradation which causes brittlement, leading to road degradation. Asphalt is just nasty stuff. I'd love to see it get replaced with alkanes (polyethlene and polypropylene from plastic, polyisoprene from rubber)