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Making Roads From Recycled Material - Is It Possible, And If So, Why Aren't We?


DonRocks

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For several years, and certainly during the past several pothole-ridden days, I have wondered to myself, "What if?"

Having spent nearly 25 years working with the EPA, I have often asked myself where my recyclables are ending up? I see them alongside trails in the form of benches. I see them in carryout food containers. But I don't think I've ever seen them underneath my tires, unless I run over an old plastic bottle.

What if?

What if we could make highways out of recycled material?

Asphalt is hot, it cracks, it forms potholes (in the past few days, I have probably screamed out loud five times when I hit a pothole that felt like I just ran over a curb).

I have never looked into this before in my life, but I'm going to Google it, right now.

---

Hmmm ...

post-2-0-64683700-1428257094_thumb.png

Where do I start?

---

Okay, I just started with the fourth one, since that was published by the Department of Transportation - that deals with the opposite issue: recycling existing highways; not making highways out of recycled waste.

Then there's this by the EPA:

"Using Recycled Industrial Materials In Roadways"

So, as I figured, someone has at least thought of this before (I can't tell you how many times I've had *amazing* ideas, sometimes being sure that nobody could have possibly thought of them before, that have already been patented - this was definitely *not* one of those times, as I couldn't imagine that someone hasn't thought of it by now).

---

Alright, I'm done. I wanted this idea out there just in case nobody was working on it, because it seems like such a *good* use of waste, but not being an engineer, I have no idea about things such as tensile strengths, heat capacities, or any of those other "terms" that you've heard of before, but don't really know what they mean. I don't know if this is even possible, but hopefully someone, somewhere, is looking into it. And sure enough:

post-2-0-87524500-1428257722_thumb.png

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Rocks, it doesn't matter if an idea is good or not.  What matters is, can someone profit from it?  If so, an entrepreneur will execute it.  If not, no one will touch it.  Modern America isn't about doing what's best (for people, for the environment, whatever), it's about making money.

cynically,

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Rocks, it doesn't matter if an idea is good or not.  What matters is, can someone profit from it?  If so, an entrepreneur will execute it.  If not, no one will touch it.  Modern America isn't about doing what's best (for people, for the environment, whatever), it's about making money.

cynically,

While what you say is largely true, there are counter-examples. One that has changed the world (certainly my world) profoundly is Wikipedia, a good idea if ever there was one. I'm sure there are ancillary activities connected with Wikipedia that somebody's making money off of, but the core idea and its implementation have been pretty purely non-profit, while creating remarkable value shared widely among people everywhere.

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Rocks, it doesn't matter if an idea is good or not.  What matters is, can someone profit from it?  If so, an entrepreneur will execute it.  If not, no one will touch it.  Modern America isn't about doing what's best (for people, for the environment, whatever), it's about making money.

cynically,

Even more cynically: What's one of the key ingredients in asphalt and why would it impact the feasibility of recycled roadways?

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Rocks, it doesn't matter if an idea is good or not.  What matters is, can someone profit from it?  If so, an entrepreneur will execute it.  If not, no one will touch it.  Modern America isn't about doing what's best (for people, for the environment, whatever), it's about making money.

cynically,

I'm Post-Modern America. :)

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Rocks, it doesn't matter if an idea is good or not.  What matters is, can someone profit from it?  If so, an entrepreneur will execute it.  If not, no one will touch it.  Modern America isn't about doing what's best (for people, for the environment, whatever), it's about making money.

cynically,

The New York Times is pretty good and they're not so much about making money.  That would normally be an issue for investors/shareholders (who are very much about "making money") but the Times has a fairly unique legal organizing structure that 'protects' it from non-family investors, causing much consternation over the years. Whether or not interested in the business stuff, the book "The Trust" by Susan Tifft is a pretty thorough telling of one of America's more dysfunctional families intertwined with the country's history.

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"A Highway Paved with Recycled Diapers May Change the Cloth vs Disposables Debate" by Karla Adam on washingtonpost.com

On 4/5/2015 at 2:11 PM, DonRocks said:

For several years, and certainly during the past several pothole-ridden days, I have wondered to myself, "What if?"

Having spent nearly 25 years working with the EPA, I have often asked myself where my recyclables are ending up? I see them alongside trails in the form of benches. I see them in carryout food containers. But I don't think I've ever seen them underneath my tires, unless I run over an old plastic bottle.

What if?

What if we could make highways out of recycled material?

Asphalt is hot, it cracks, it forms potholes (in the past few days, I have probably screamed out loud five times when I hit a pothole that felt like I just ran over a curb).

I have never looked into this before in my life, but I'm going to Google it, right now.

---

Hmmm ...

post-2-0-64683700-1428257094_thumb.png

Where do I start?

---

Okay, I just started with the fourth one, since that was published by the Department of Transportation - that deals with the opposite issue: recycling existing highways; not making highways out of recycled waste.

Then there's this by the EPA:

"Using Recycled Industrial Materials In Roadways"

So, as I figured, someone has at least thought of this before (I can't tell you how many times I've had *amazing* ideas, sometimes being sure that nobody could have possibly thought of them before, that have already been patented - this was definitely *not* one of those times, as I couldn't imagine that someone hasn't thought of it by now).

---

Alright, I'm done. I wanted this idea out there just in case nobody was working on it, because it seems like such a *good* use of waste, but not being an engineer, I have no idea about things such as tensile strengths, heat capacities, or any of those other "terms" that you've heard of before, but don't really know what they mean. I don't know if this is even possible, but hopefully someone, somewhere, is looking into it. And sure enough:

post-2-0-87524500-1428257722_thumb.png

 

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