The road to recycling could well be paved with plastic waste

20 Jan 2020

Local construction company Samwoh has teamed up with SP researchers and students to use plastic waste in asphalt to build more durable road surfaces. Research scientist Lim Zheng Bang and research engineer Estee Tan of SP's Advanced Materials Technology Centre, and Dr Handojo Djati Utomo and Dr Chan Chin Loong, lecturers at the School of Architecture and the Built Environment, worked with two groups of students to test the asphalt made with the plastic pellets. The team found that asphalt made from plastic waste could last at least 20 per cent longer than regular asphalt, and had levels of chemical leaching that were within official guidelines. This is the first time such pellets have been used in creating asphalt in Singapore. The team will continue its research, and hopes to test its product on a stretch of road soon. COMMS Note: This is part of our SPOH20 stories.