Project | RENew: Construction waste for a circular economy: from an industry intensively consuming natural resources to a competitive solution for the reintroduction of waste on a large scale

Co-financed by the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), under the COMPETE 2020 Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization of Portugal 2020.

Main goal | Reinforce research, technological development and innovation

Location | North

Consortium | Domingos da Silva Teixeira S.A. (lead partner); Universidade do Minho; Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro; CVR - Centro para a Valorização de Resíduos.

Approval date | 2019-07-16

Start date | 2019-11-24

End date | 2023-06-30

Total eligible cost | 1.573.259,57 €

EU financial support | 926.058,05 € (FEDER)

Synthesis

Description

This project proposes the development and concretization of structural concrete and innovative bituminous concrete for widespread use, manufactured using industrial waste or by-products, responding to problems of, on the one hand, drastically reducing the use of natural resources and energy-qualified test products in construction, and on the other hand, to enhance the reintroduction of waste and by-products in the value chain, under the concept of circular economy. The project also involves the development of all associated manufacturing processes, as well as additional features that allow an extension of the useful life of the constructions and their use in special applications.

In order to aim at a radical increase in sustainability in the construction industry, this project is based on an approach that combines 3 different vectors:

1) Structural concrete and bituminous concrete technology with waste incorporation: optimization of structural and bituminous concrete formulations to maximize the incorporation of waste, either as aggregates or binders, aiming to create the first structural concrete prototypes containing 100% recycled materials;

2) Self-repair mechanisms in structural concrete and bituminous concrete incorporating residues to extend its useful life: research and development of self-repair processes in structural and bituminous concrete to extend its useful life; this way, it will be possible to reduce the environmental and economic cost during the period of useful life of the construction;

3) Systematic models for the continuous valorisation of wastes and industrial by-products in a business environment, and their transition to the market: research and development of models for continuous deepening of the circular economy concept in the context of construction industry processes. This model will be based on the in-depth evaluation of the company's production process, the definition of processes for the permanent identification of available waste with potential for valorisation, and the analysis of the life cycle and cost cycle associated to the manufacturing, the availability and the maintenance of these products.