Days of putting up with crumbling asphalt
streets might just come to an end.
Construction company VolkerWessels has
revealed plans for recycled plastic roads that
are both more sustainable and more practical
than old-fashioned blacktop.
Besides reusing
material, they'd last about three times longer
and survive greater temperature ranges
(between -40F and 176F) -- despite their fragile
look, they're less likely to crack under the
strain of vehicles or the weather. You can pre-
assemble them to lay them down faster, too,
and their hollow structure is handy for cabling
and pipes.
This is just a concept at the moment, but
VolkerWessels fully intends to test it and make
sure that it holds up in the real world. That's
not idle talk, either. The Dutch city of
Rotterdam is interested in trying out these
plastic surfaces in its "street lab," and the
company hopes to have an honest-to-goodness
route in operation within three years. If the
idea still sounds outlandish, look at it this way:
it's likely the closest you'll ever get to driving a
Hot Wheels track in real life.

http://www.engadget.com/2015/07/19/plastic-roads/

Wow

Innovative! But something keeps ringing in my frontal lobe: friction! Friction!! Friction!!!....

Once a people have conquered such basic distractions as hunger, sound education, clean water,shelter, etc,then they can fully grow into developing the fantastic innovative ability they're being endowed by Providence!

African leaders are yet to overcome most of these BASIC issues. How can we think? Thinking is one of the most stressful and engaging activity anyone can indulge. How can you engage in it when you're hungry, naked, living in squalor? Tell me, my people.

Bro, Africa is a huge disappointment. Just look around your immediate vicinity. What did you find? Dirts. Potholes. Poverty. Stench. Darkness. Individuals sinking bore holes. What a people. SMH!!!!

Does recycled plastics have the compresive strength and wear resistance to be able to survive the day to day wear and load of vehicles and their tires?

I was taught that:

Ceramics (a category which the present asphalt falls into) are usually good at carrying compressive loads and possess good wear resistance.

Thermoplastics (with the exception of thermosets) are recyclable, possess excellent tensile strengths but poor compressive strength and poor wear resistance.

So now, how will thermoplastics replace ceramics for road construction?


[size=1pt]lalasticlala[/size]

francizy:


Does recycled plastics have the compresive strength and wear resistance to be able to survive the day to day wear and load of vehicles and their tires?

I was taught that:

Ceramics (a category which the present asphalt falls into) are usually good at carrying compressive loads and possess good wear resistance.

Thermoplastics (with the exception of thermosets) are recyclable, possess excellent tensile strengths but poor compressive strength and poor wear resistance.

So now, how will thermoplastics replace ceramics for road construction?

Bro, come down to our level

dearpreye:


Bro, come down to our level

Lol! Wear/abrasive resistance na simple Engineering terms na..

Lemme give you examples, it's quit easier to scratch off pieces of plastic from parent plastic materials than scratching off particles of stone from a bigger stone (or rock). This simply means that stones have better abrasive resistance than plastics. Reason why granites/gravels were used for road constructions in the first place ( and are still being used).

Compressive strength is the ability of a material to withstand compressive loading without failure. Compressive in the sense that, when you press down a material or put a heavy load on a material, you are exerting a compressive load on it. If I sit on your face, am exerting a compressive load on your face.. This is opposite of tensile loading which involves pulling a material outwardly (tensile strength/load is not important in this contest tho).

These are the reasons why am kinda perplexed as to how recycled plastics which I know they possess poor compressive strength and wear resistance can be used to replace ceramics (asphalt) for road construction.

vfactor:
Innovative! But something keeps ringing in my frontal lobe: friction! Friction!! Friction!!!....

A different phrase is ringing in mine:
Tanker fire! Tanker fire!!

Shagati:


A different phrase is ringing in mine:
Tanker fire! Tanker fire!!

You see!? They should come up with something better and cheaper! Maybe fire resistant, rough plastic

they should start by making parking lots.

Shagati:


A different phrase is ringing in mine:
Tanker fire! Tanker fire!!

They can be made to be fire resistant. The plastics used might even be non flammable.

Nice innovation.... Hope it won't be affected by the picture below





For Aso-Oke, Check my signature

SurefireAsoOke:
Nice innovation.... Hope it won't be affected by the picture below






For Aso-Oke, Check my signature

Lol! I guess only advanced societies would find these kind of road beneficial

OP, post the source of this your news, otherwise it just fiction

would I've believed to some extent, but the pictures of the road I saw, with underneath it with pipes. How is an hollow plastic supposed to withstand the pressure from weigh of many cars. ?

Will there be enough frictional force between the road and car tyres?