The Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) said it has developed technology to manufacture an environmental pavement material using scrapped tires, which could provide better skid resistance and better traction than conventional asphalt, with the material to be widely adopted in Taipei.
The EPA said it produces “rubber-asphalt” concrete by blending ground recycled tires with paving grade asphalt cement and other aggregate materials.
A section of Expressway No. 61 in Taoyuan’s Dayuan District (大園), where heavy-duty vehicles commonly use, was paved with the material on a trial basis in June, the EPA said, adding that the road showed higher resistance to skidding, better road evenness and better drainage ability.
The rubber-asphalt-based surfaces generate less vibration, lower noise and lower carbon dioxide emission than roads made with conventional asphalt, Resource Recycling Fund Management Committee director Hsu Yung-hsing (許永興) said.
While the manufacturing cost of the rubber asphalt concrete is higher than for conventional materials, it is more durable and cost-effective in the long term, as it resists cracking and could thereby reduce maintenance costs, while it can be used at a reduced thickness to significantly reduce building costs, Hsu said.
The concrete drains rainwater faster than conventional asphalt, helping to prevent water accumulation while increasing driving safety, he said.
The nation generates up to 170,000 tonnes of waste tires and recycles about 110,000 tonnes every year, Hsu said, adding that more than 70 percent of recycled tires are supplied to plants as auxiliary fuel, which is not in accordance with environmental demands.
Twenty percent of recycled tires are processed to use in tiles, mattress and collision impact absorbers, he added.
The EPA developed the rubber-asphalt concrete to deal with surplus tires and boost the recycling rate, the EPA said, adding that reusable rubber accounts for about 8 percent of a waste tire, while it takes about 40 tires to make paving material for 1km of road.
The EPA is working with the Taipei City Government to set up an environmental pavement pilot program by having road constructions in the city use rubber-asphalt concrete to make “tires run on tires,” Hsu said.
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