By using concentrated solar energy for the heating, the researchers at IIT Madras noted that the thermo-mechanical beneficiation of the concrete waste results in high-quality recyclable materials, the release noted.
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, or IIT Madras have developed a treatment process that uses solar thermal energy to recycle construction and demolition debris. The demo of the process was done at the India One Solar Thermal Power Plant that is located in Shantivan.
“The waste concrete from demolition was heated using solar radiation to produce recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) that was higher in quality when compared to those obtained from mechanical crushing. The concrete made using this technology met the requirements for typical structural applications,” according to a PIB release.
By using concentrated solar energy for the heating, the researchers at IIT Madras noted that the thermo-mechanical beneficiation of the concrete waste results in high-quality recyclable materials, the release noted. These can substitute stone aggregates and sand in concrete, it added.
According to Prof. Ravindra Gettu, VS Raju Chair Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Madras, the process would significantly reduce the energy footprint of construction and demolition waste processing and would lead to savings in raw material and electricity, towards a circular economy.
The study addressed three objectives: the use of concentrated solar energy in the thermomechanical beneficiation of concrete waste, the production of high-quality RCA from the waste, and assessing the performance of the RCA in concrete to establish the fact that waste can be recycled.
