KIT COLLEGE KOLHAPUR CIVIL ENGG.

KOLHAPUR INSTITUDE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

KOLHAPUR
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGG.

A SEMINAR REPORT ON

“USE OF PLASTIC WASTE IN ROAD CONSTRUCTION”

SUBMITTED BY,

Name Roll No

Surve Pankaj. B 159

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

Prof. Miss.Vidula Swami mam

SHIVAJI UNIVERSITY, KOLHAPUR

2015-2016

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KOLHAPUR INSTITUDE COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

KOLHAPUR
DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGG.

This it to certify that seminar report submitted by

Mr. Surve Pankaj Baburao Of Third Year in Civil Engg have successfully completed
the seminar on “USE OF PLASTIC WASTE IN ROAD CONSTRUCTION ” in the
partial fulfillment of degree course in Civil Engg, as per the rules laid down by Shivaji University,
Kolhapur.

Prof.Miss. Swami mam Prof.Mr. Mohan Chavan

(SEMINARGUIDE) (H.O.D)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
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I would like to thank respected Prof.Miss.Vidula Swami mam for giving me such a wonderful
opportunity to expand my knowledge for my own branch and giving me guidelines to present a
seminar report. It helped me a lot to realize of what we study for.
Secondly, I would like to thank my parents who patiently helped me as i went through my work
and helped to modify and eliminate some of the irrelevant or un-necessary stuffs.
I would also like to thank my friends who helped me to make my work more organized and
well-stacked till the end.
Next, I would thank Microsoft for developing such a wonderful tool like MS Word. It helped my
work a lot to remain error-free.
Last but clearly not the least, I would thank The Almighty for giving me strength to complete
my report on time.

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PREFACE

I have made this report file on the topic “Use of Plastic Waste In Road Construction”.I have
tried my best to elucidate all the relevant detail to the topic to be included in the report. While in the
beginning I have tried to give a general view about this topic.
My efforts and wholehearted co-corporation of each and everyone has ended on a successful
note. I express my sincere gratitude to Prof.Miss.Vidula Swami mam for assisting me throughout
the preparation of this topic. I thank her for providing me the reinforcement, confidence and most
important the track for the topic whenever I needed it.

SR. NO. CONTENT PAGE NO.

6
1 ABSTRACT
7
2 INTRODUCTION

3 PIASTIC –THE BINDER 8

ECONOMICS OF ROAD
4 9

5 MATERIAL USED 10

6 COST 11

7 PROCESSING DETAILS 12

8 ENHANCED PROPERTIES 13

9 FLOW CHART SHOWING METHODS OF CONTRUCTION 14

10 SALIENT FEATURES 15

11 COMPARISON 16

12 ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES 17

13 CASESTUDY 18

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14 KOLHAPUR
CONCLUSION CIVIL ENGG.
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15 REFERENCE 22

INDEX

ABSTRACT

Disposal plastic waste is a serious concern in India. New technologies have been
developed to minimize their adverse effect on the environment. Currently worldwide accepted
technology used for the plastic disposal is incineration. Plastics are user friendly but not eco-friendly
as they are non-biodegradable, generally it is disposed by way of land filling or incineration of
materials which are hazardous. The better binding property of plastics in its molten state has helped
in finding out a method of safe disposal of waste plastics, by using them in road laying
Utilization of waste plastic bags in bituminous mixes has proved that these enhance the
properties of mix in addition to solving disposal problems. Plastic waste which is cleaned is cut into a
size such that it passes through 2-3mm sieve using shredding machine. The aggregate mix is heated
and the plastic is effectively coated over the aggregate. This plastic waste coated aggregate is mixed
with hot bitumen and the resulted mix is used for road construction. The use of the innovative
technology will not only strengthen the road construction but also increase the road life as well as
will help to improve the environment. Plastic roads would be a boon for India’s hot and extremely
humid climate, where temperatures frequently cross 50°C and torrential rains create havoc, leaving
most of the roads with big potholes. In my research work I have done a thorough study on the
methodology of using plastic waste in bituminous mixes and presented the various tests performed
on aggregates and bitumen.
Plastic roads would be a boon for our country & in near future we will have strong,
durable and eco-friendly roads which will relieve the earth from all type of plastic-waste.

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INTRODUCTION

Plastic is everywhere in today’s lifestyle. It has become a part of human life With the
industrial revolution, mass production of goods started and plastic seemed to be a cheaper and
effective raw material. Today, every vital sector of the economy starting from agriculture to
packaging, automobile, building construction, communication or InfoTech has been virtually
revolutionized by the applications of plastics. Use of this non-biodegradable (according to recent
studies, plastics can stay unchanged for as long as 4500 years on earth) product is growing rapidly
and the problem is what to do with plastic-waste. Studies have linked the improper disposal of plastic
to problems as distant as breast cancer, reproductive problems in humans and animals, genital
abnormalities and even a decline in human sperm count and quality. If a ban is put on the use of
plastics on emotional grounds, the real cost would be much higher, the inconvenience much more,
the chances of damage or contamination much greater. The risks to the family health and safety
would increase and, above all the environmental burden would be manifold. Hence the question is
not „plastics Vs no plastics‟ but it is more concerned with the judicious use and re-use of plastic-
waste.
In recent years, applications of plastic wastes have been considered in road construction
with great interest in many developing countries. The use of these materials in road making is based
on technical, economic, and ecological criteria. The lack of traditional road materials and the
protection of the environment make it imperative to investigate the possible use of these materials
carefully India has a large network of metro cities located in different parts of thecountry and many
more are planned for the near future. Several million metric tons plastic wastes are produced every
year in India.

Traditionally soil, stone aggregates, sand, bitumen cement etc. are used for road
construction. Natural materials being exhaustible in nature, its quantity is declining gradually. Also,
cost of extracting good quality of natural material is increasing. Concerned about this, the scientists
are looking for alternative materials for highway construction, and plastic wastes product is one such
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category. If KOLHAPUR
these materials can be suitably utilized in highway construction, CIVIL ENGG.
the pollution and
disposal problems may be partly reduced. In the absence of other outlets, these solid wastes have
occupied several acres of land around plants throughout the country. Keeping in mind the need for
bulk use of these solid wastes in India, it was thought expedient to test these materials and to develop
specifications to enhance the use of these plastic wastes in road making, in which higher economic
returns may be possible. The possible use of these materials should be developed for construction of
low-volume roads in different parts of our country. The necessary specifications should formulated
and attempts are to be made to maximize the use of solid wastes in different layers of the road
pavement

PLASTIC –THE BINDER

 Bitumen is a useful binder for road construction.

 The steady increase in high traffic intensity in terms of commercial vehicles, and the
significant variation in daily and seasonal temperature demand improved road characteristics.

 Any improvement in the property of the binder is the needed.

 Waste plastics on heating soften at around 130°C.

 Thermo gravimetric analysis has shown that there is no gas evolution in the temperature
range of 130-180°C. Moreover the softened plastics have a binding property.

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ECONOMICS OF ROAD CONSTRUCTION :

Laying of Bitumen Road – Indian Roads Congress (IRC) Specifications:

There are different types of bitumen roads. They are, Dense Bituminous Macadam,
Bituminous Macadam. These roads differ in 3-ways i.e.

1. Composition of the aggregate

2. Type of bitumen used

3. Thickness of layer.

Bitumen is an useful binder for road construction. Different grades of bitumen like 30/40, 60/70,
and 80/100 are available on the basis of their penetration values and these grades can be used as IRC
Specifications. Waste plastics (10% in place of bitumen) can be used for these different types of
bitumen roads. The technology of road laying is very much the same as prescribed by the Indian
Roads Congress (Section 500, IV revision) Specifications. A detailed description of the material
required for laying of Semi Dense Bituminous Concrete (SDBC) 25 mm road (on existing road) is
described below:

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MATERIALS INVOLVED :

 For 1000M x 3.75M (25mm) Road:

1. 11.250 tons (60/70 grade) bitumen needed
2. Shredded Plastics Required : 10% by weight (passing 4.74mm sieve & retaining 2.36 mm).
3. Bitumen replaced (saved) by 10% Plastics : 1.125 tons
4. Actual Bitumen Required : 10.125 tons
5. Aggregate (11.2mm) : 70.875 m³

6. Aggregate (6.7mm) : 43.125 m³

7. Aggregate Dust : 23.625 m³

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COST:

The total cost including material as mentioned above, labour charge etc. (at Madurai) is approx. 5.00
lakh, however, the cost may be different from place to place and have to be calculated accordingly.
The cost break-up is given below:
1. Collection of littered plastics : Rs. 0.50 lakh
2. Cost of shredder and other equipment : Rs. 0.50 lakh
3. Laying of road with material, labour etc. :Rs. 4.00 lakh
4. Total : Rs. 5.00 lakh
Conventional Bitumen Road Battered Polymer-Aggregate-Bitumen Mix Road
By Heavy Rain Undamaged By Heavy Rain

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PROCESSING DETAILS:

1. Collection of waste plastic.

Government should organize separate workers to collect the waste plastic from different places and
there by employment is provided to the local labors.

2. Cleaning and shredding of waste plastic

Waste plastic litter are sorted, de-dusted, washed.
Plastic waste which is cleaned is cut into a size such that it passes through 2-3mm sieve using
shredding machine

3.Mixing Of Shredded Waste Plastic, Aggregate And

BituminIn Central Mixing Plant:-

The aggregate mix is heated to 165 degree centigrade (as per the HRS specification) in central
mixing plant.
The 8% of waste plastic to the weight of bitumen are added in the conveyor belt or special
mechanical device is developed which will spray the plastics inside the chamber to coat the plastics
effectively over the aggregate .Similarly the bitumen is to be heated up to a maximum of 160ºc is
mixed with coated aggregate.
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4. Laying Of Bitumenous Blend Mix:-

 The plastics waste coated aggregate is mixed with hot bitumen and the resulted mix is used
for road construction.
 The road laying temperature is between 110 to 120 degree centigrade.
 The roller used is 8-ton capacity.

ENHANCED PROPERTIES OF THE MIX:

 Coating of plastic over aggregate to the tune of 10 - 15% by weight of bitumen improves the
binding properties of the mix:

 Higher softening point and lower penetration point due to interlinking of polymer molecule
with bitumen.
 Lesser moisture absorptive capacity due to coating of plastics at the surface.
 Better ductility, higher Marshall Stability value.
 Better stripping value (No stripping on soaking in water for 72 hrs)
 High compressive strength (>100mpa) and high flexural strength (>450 Kg/cm with respect
to the binding property)
 The roads are twice as strong as normal roads and resistant towards water stagnation and
lesser bleeding .

 Polymer blended Bitumen shows higher Softening point, lower penetration point, and better
ductility. Polymer coated aggregate blended with Bitumen shows higher Marshall value and
better stripping value showing that the mix is more suited for road laying.

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Flow Chart showing method for construction of Road Raw material

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SALIENT FEATURES OF THE POLYMER-WASTE-BITUMEN

MIX ROAD

 Road strength is twice stronger than normal roads;

 Resistance towards water stagnation i.e. no potholes are formed;

 Less bleeding during summer;
 Burning of plastics waste could be avoided
 It doesn‟t involve any extra machinery;
 It doesn‟t increase cost of road construction; and
 It helps to reduce the consumption of bituminous mix vis-à-vis reduce cost
 It is observed that addition of plastics waste up to 10 - 15% by weight of bitumen resulted
into higher values of softening point and lower values of penetration, which are appreciable
improvements in the properties of the binder. This has resulted and withstood higher traffic
load and high temperature variation. Several experimental stretches have been laid in more
than 15 locations in Tamilnadu using both Mini hot-mix and central mixing plants.

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COMPARISON

The durability of the roads laid out with shredded plastic waste is much more compared
with roads with asphalt with the ordinary mix. Roads laid with plastic waste mix are found to be
better than the conventional ones. The binding property of plastic makes the road last longer besides
giving added strength to withstand more loads. While a normal 'highway quality' road lasts four to
five years it is claimed that plastic-bitumen roads can last up to 10 years. Rainwater will not seep
through because of the plastic in the tar. So, this technology will result in lesser road repairs. And as
each km of road with an average width requires over two tones ofpolyblend, using plastic will help
reduce non-biodegradable waste. The cost of plastic road construction may be slightly higher
compared to the conventional method. However, this should not deter the adoption of the technology
as the benefits are much higher than the cost. Plastic roads would be a boon for India’s hot and
extremely humid climate, where temperatures frequently cross 50°C and torrential rains create havoc,
leaving most of the roads with big potholes. Already, a kilometer long test-track has been tested in
Karnataka using this technology. The government is keen on encouraging the setting up of small
plants for mixing waste plastic and bitumen for road construction. It is hoped that in near future we
will have strong, durable and eco-friendly roads which will relieve the earth from all type of plastic-
waste.

SL. PROPERTIES PLASTIC ORDINARY

NO ROAD ROAD
1 Marshal stability More less
value
2 Softening point less More
3 Penetrating value More less
4 Tensile strength High Low
5 Binding property better good
6 Stripping(potholes No more
)
7 Seepage water No yes
8 Durability of roads Better Good
9 Cost of pavements Less Normal
10 Maintenance cost Almost nil More
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11 rutting Low More
12 Eco-friendly yes No

ADVANTAGES DUE TO PLASTIC IN ROAD:

1. Porosity:
Due to presence of pores, the air accumulates in the pores thereby oxidizing bitumen resulting in loss
of its visco-elastic property. Due to addition of polymers, porosity is reduced to less than 2%,
resulting in very less stripping of bitumen thereby improving the aggregate quality .

2. Soundness:
The ability of the aggregate to resist weather conditions is improved

3. Moisture Absorption:
As plastics are added to the aggregates, moisture absorption ability of the aggregates decreases,
resulting in better resistance to rain.

4. Rebound deflection is minimum.

5. Higher resistance to rain and water logging.

6. Load withstanding property of the road is improved and caters to the increasing road transport.

7. For a stretch of 1km by 4m road approximately 1 ton bitumen is saved and 1 ton of plastic is
reused.

8. Thus shelf life of road is improved.

DISADVANTAGES OF PLASTIC ROADS

1. Cleaning process Toxics present in the co-mingled plastic waste would d start leaching.

2. During the road laying process But the presence of chlorine will definitely release noxious HCL
gas

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CASE STUDY

BANGALORE’S KK PROCESS:-

At the initiative of M/s K.K. Poly Flex Pvt. Ltd., a study on the possible use of the processed
plastic waste bags with the bituminous mixes was carried out at the R.V. College of
Engineering Bangalore. A group of students of B.E. degree course in Chemical Engineering of this
college under the guidance of the concerned teaching staff carried out their final year project work
for studying the possibility of using of the processed plastic bags with bitumen and bituminous
mixes. As some encouraging results were reported in this study, M/s K.K. Poly Flex Pvt. Ltd. later
approached the Centre for Transportation Engineering of Bangalore University with the request to
carry out further research studies on the effects of using the processed plastic bags with bituminous
mixes for road construction works.

In practice, such a “plastic road” laid in Bangalore (at the busy Rajarajeshwari Junction) in
March 2001 as a technology demonstration for the Chief Minister, showed superior smoothness
and uniformity and less rutting as compared to a plastics-free road laid at the same time, which has
begun to develop “crocodile cracks”. As a result, by now 25 km of “plastic roads” have been laid
in Bangalore.All these 25 km Road Lentgh are performing well. The process was also approved in
2003 by the CRRI=(Central Road Research Institute) Delhi, and has thereafter been included in the
Govt of Karnataka’s PWD Schedule of Rates. Road life improves through improved tackiness and
viscosity of the bituminous mix, thereby binding the stones more firmly together and improving
the water-resistance of the mix to rain etc. For the same reason, the temperature of the mix both
at the plant and at the point of lying needs to be 20°C higher than normal.

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has used plastic on about 600 km of
roads, including many thoroughfares and arterial roads. It uses the plastic blend in at least 25% of
the road-laying works, including the present project to upgrade about 45 roads in the city. The
plastic model was successful on major roads in Bangalore, including Shankar Mutt Road, K
H Road, M G Road (towards Trinity Circle), J C Nagar Road, Miller's Road and Cunningham
Road. The rise in bitumen costs over the past few years has also made the plastic model more
cost-efficient. To top it, plastic is not recycled but buried with the roads, forever.

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WASTE PLASTIC ROADS CONSTRUCTED:-

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has used plastic on about 600 km of roads,
including many thoroughfares and arterial roads. It uses the plastic blend in at least

25% of the road-laying works, including the present project to upgrade about 45 roads in the
city. The plastic model was successful on major roads in Bangalore, including Shankar Mutt
Road, K H Road, M G Road (towards Trinity Circle), J C Nagar Road, Miller's Road and Cunningham
Road, inner ring road, Rajarajeshwari Junction, mysore Bangalore state highway. The sign in front
of Puttanna Chetty Town Hall.

Raja Rajeswari Nagar Road

T v tower road

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Manipal tower road

Dollars Colony

Banagalore-Mysore state highway

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CONCLUSION:-

The generation of waste plastics is increasing day by day. The major polymers namely
polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene show adhesion property in their molten state Plastics
will increase the melting point of the bitumen. The waste plastic bitumen mix forms better
material for pavement construction as the mix shows higher Marshall Stability value and
suitable Marshall Coefficient. Hence the use of waste plastics for pavement is one of the best
methods for easy disposal of waste plastics.

The use of the innovative technology not only strengthened the road construction but also
increased the road life as well as will help to improve the environment and also creating a source
of income.

Plastic roads would be a boon for India’s hot and extremely humid climate, where
temperatures frequently cross 50°C and torrential rains create havoc, leaving most of the roads with
big potholes. It is hoped that in near future we will have strong, durable and eco-friendly roads
which will relieve the earth from all type of plastic-waste.

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REFERENCES

1) Ministry of Road Transport and High Ways, Manual for construction and supervision
of Bituminous works, New Delhi, November 2001.

2) Sri Ram Institute for Industrial Research, Plastics Processing and Environmental Aspects,
New Delhi – 7

3) Vasudevan, R., Utilization of waste plastics for flexible pavement, Indian High

Ways (Indian Road Congress), Vol. 34, No.7. (July 2006).

4) Amjad Khan, Gangadhar, Murali Mohan and Vinay Raykar, "Effective Utilisatio

Guidance of Suresh and H.Kumar ,Dept. of Chemical Engg Engineering,Bangalore.1999.

5) Mroueh, U. M., and Wahlstrom, M. (2002). “By-Products and Recycled Materials in Earth
Construction in Finland – An Assessment of Applicability.” Resources, Conservation and Recycling,
No. 35,2002, pp. 117-129

6) IRC:SP:20-2002. “Rural Roads Manual”, Indian Roads Congress

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