USE OF WASTE PLASTIC FOR CONSTRUCTION OF
ROADS
VIGNESH M S
                                                                             USN:1RV15CV115
Department of Civil Engineering
R V college of engineering
Bengaluru 560064
Vigneshms.cv15@rvce.edu.in
Abstract - Disposal of waste materials including waste
plastic bags has become a serious problem and waste plastics
are burnt for apparent disposal which cause environmental
pollution. 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.
Keywords: Plastic Waste, Bitumen, Aggregates, Plastic
Roads, polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP) and
polystyrene (PS)
I. INTRODUCTION
A material that contains one or more organic polymers of
large molecular weight, solid in its finished state and at
some state while manufacturing or processing into
finished articles, can be shaped by its flow, is called as
‘Plastic’. Plastics are durable and degrade very slowly;
the chemical bonds that make plastic so durable make it
equally resistant to natural processes of degradation.
Plastics can be divided in to two major categories:
thermoses and thermoplastics. A
thermoset solidifies or “sets” irreversibly when heated.
They are useful for their durability and strength, and are
therefore used primarily in automobiles and construction
applications. These plastics are polyethylene,
polypropylene, polyamide, poly oxymethylene,
polytetrafluorethylene, and polyethyleneterephthalate. A
thermoplastic softens when exposed to heat and returns to
original condition at room temperature. Thermoplastics
can easily be shaped and moulded into products such as
milk jugs, floor coverings, credit cards, and carpet fibres.
These plastic types are known as phenolic, melamine,
unsaturated polyester, epoxy resin, silicone, and
polyurethane.
Use of plastic along with the bitumen in construction of
roads not only increases its life and smoothness but also
makes it economically sound and environment friendly.
Plastic waste is used as modifier of bitumen to improve
some of bitumen properties Roads that are constructed
using plastic waste are known as Plastic Roads and are
found to perform better compared to those constructed
with conventional bitumen. Further it has been found that
such roads were not subjected to stripping when come in
contact with water. Use of higher percentage of plastic
waste reduces the need of bitumen by 10%. It also
increases the strength and performance of the road.
Plastic increases the melting point of bitumen and hence
missing can be done in more better and easier way.
According to Dr. R. Vasudevan, Dean ECA and
Professor, Department of Chemistry, Thiagarajar College
of Engineering, Madurai, plastic waste replaces 10% to
15% of bitumen, and thereby saves approximately
Rs.35000 to Rs.45000 per kilometer of a road stretch.
Inclusion of plastic waste in road construction eliminates
the plastic shrinkage cracking of road surface and reduces
the drying shrinkage to some extent.
II. PLASTIC AS AN ADDITIVE FOR
BITUMINOUS MATRIALS
Plastic is mixed with the bitumen. Plastic increases the
melting point of the bitumen and makes the road retain its
flexibility during winters resulting in its long life. Use of
shredded plastic waste acts as a strong binding agent for
tar making the asphalt last long. By mixing plastic with
bitumen the ability of the bitumen to withstand high
temperature increases. The plastic waste is melted and
mixed with bitumen in a particular ratio. Normally,
blending takes place when temperature reaches 45.5°C
but when plastic is mixed, it remains stable even at 55°C.
1
The vigorous tests at the laboratory level proved that the
bituminous concrete mixes prepared using the treated
bitumen binder fulfilled all the specified Marshall mix
design criteria for surface course of road pavement. There
was a substantial increase in Marshall Stability value of
the BC mix, of the order of two to three times higher
value in comparison with the untreated or ordinary
bitumen. Another important observation was that the
bituminous mixes prepared using the treated binder could
withstand adverse soaking conditions under water for
longer duration.
Mixing of plastic is done by mainly two processes
DRY PROCESS: In Dry process waste plastics are used
as coating materials by softening the plastic and not by
burning. For a flexible pavement hot stone aggregate is
mixed with hot bitumen and the mix is used for road
laying. The aggregate when coated with plastics improved
its quality with respect to voids, soundness and moisture
absorption and decreases porosity and thus the
performance of the pavement is increased.
WET PROCESS: Plastic waste is ground and made into
powder 6 to 8%. Plastic is added to the bitumen at
160‘C. The process did not yield a homogenous mix with
prominent separated solid deposits of mix therefore wet
process was not adopted and another waste material
(crumb rubber) has been adopted to add to it.
III. PREPARATION OF POLYMER- AGGREGATE
BITUMEN MIX
• Cleaned and dried plastic wastes (e.g.: disposedcarry
bags, films, cups and thermocole) with a maximum
thickness of 60 microns is shredded into small pieces
(2.36 mm - 4.75 mm size). PVC is not suitable for this
process.
• Aggregate is heated to 165°C in a mini hot mixplant
• Shredded plastic is added to the hot mix. The plastic
gets softened and coated over the surface of the aggregate
giving an oily look in 30–60 sec.
• Hot Bitumen (heated up to a maximum of 160°C to
ensure good binding) is added immediately and the
contents are mixed well.
• The mix, when cooled to 110-120°C can be used for
road laying using 8 ton capacity road roller.
As the plastics are heated to a maximum temperature of
165°C, there is no evolution of any gas. When heated
above 270°C, the plastics get decomposed and above
750°C they get burnt to produce noxious gases.
IV. 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 and high flexural strength.
• The roads are twice as strong as normal roads and
resistant towards water stagnation and lesser bleeding.
V. BENEFITS OF MODIFIED BINDER
• Improved resistance to surface-initiated cracking due
to high binder content.
• Improved ageing and oxidation resistance.
• Improved resistance to fatigue and reflection cracking
due to higher binder contents.
• Improved resistance to rutting due to higher viscosity
and softening points.
• Increased night time visibility due to contrast between
pavement and stripping.
• Reduced tyre noise due to increased binder film
thickness and opening textue.
• Reduced construction time on site.
• Lower pavement maintenance costs due to improved
quality pavement.
• Plastic roads can have hollow space built in to allow
ease of wiring, connecting pipes, etc.
• Heating and power generation can be incorporated
into plastic roads. Heating can prevent roads from
freezing; it can also help evaporate water from the
surface.
• Plastic roads can be made into interlocking pieces
that can be quickly assembled or disassemble.
• Plastic roads can be built from waste plastic --- the
majority of which is usually put into landfill,
incinerated, or polluted into the environment.
VI. 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
2
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 of polyblend, 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.
Pavement Applications”, ASCE, Journal of Materials in Civil
Engineering, ,29(4), 2017.
[2] Shubham Bansal, Anil Kumar Misra, Purnima Bajpai, “
Evaluation of modified bituminous concrete mix developed
using rubber and plastic waste materials”, ELSEVIER,
International Journal of Sustainable Built Environment, 442-
448,2017.
[3] Jalal J. Jafar, “ Utilisation of Waste Plastic in Bituminous Mix
for Improved Performance of Roads”, Journal of Highway
Engineering,2015.
[4] Ahmed Trimbakwala, “ Plastic Roads Use of Waste Plastic in
Road Construction”, Journal of Scientific and Research
Publications, Volume 7, Issue 4,2017.
[5] Johnson Kwabena Appiah, Victor Nana Berko-Boateng, Trinity
Ama Tagbor, “ Use of waste plastic materials for Road
construction in Ghana”, ELSEVIER, Case Studies in
Construction Material,1-7,2017.
[6] IRC:SP:20-2002. “Rural Roads Manual”, Indian Roads
Congress.

VII. ECONOMICS OF ROAD CONSTRUCTION

Cost Analysis Assuming Cost of plastics waste
(collection, segregation and processing) = Rs. 5 per Kg.
Cost of Bitumen per drum (200 Kg) =10000 .Cost of
Bitumen per Kg = 50. Cost of bitumen per ton =50000.
Generally roads in India are constructed in basic width of
3.75 m. Consider 1 Km length road to lay 1km of road 10
tons of bitumen is required. Cost of bitumen required per
Km= Rs. 5,00,000.Assuming Optimum percentage of
plastic as per the test results of literature reviewed is
around 10% (by % wt. of bitumen). Total quantity of
bitumen required = 9 tons.Total quantity of plastic waste
required = 1 ton. Cost of bitumen for 9 tons = Rs.
4,50,000. Cost of plastic waste = Rs. 5000. Total cost of
bitumen and plastic = Rs. 4,55,000. Total savings =
5,00,000 - 4,55,000 = Rs.45,000 per Km.

VIII. CONCLUSION
Plastics will increase the melting point of the bitumen.
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.

IX. REFERENCES

[1] Ehsan Yaghoubi, Arul Arulrajah, Yat Choy Wong, Suksun

Horpibulsuk, “ Stiffness Properties of Recycled Concrete
Aggregate with Polyethylene Plastic Granules in Unbound