Plastic bricks: a sustainable alternative gaining ground in North America and beyond
Plastic bricks exist and bring a notable advantage. They share the constructive properties of traditional bricks, yet offer superior heat insulation. A collaboration between an Argentine organization and a United States company has produced this material, allowing bricks to be saved in half compared to regular bricks. Houses are already being built with these blocks.
The Center for Experimental Affordable Housing CEVE, a research center in the city of Córdoba Argentina, developed this innovation along with other efforts focused on reusing plastic materials. The team led by Rosa Gaggino, an architect and director of CEVE, developed bricks made from disposable PET bottles crushed in a specialized mill and then incorporated into a cement mix.
According to Gaggino the manufacturing process mirrors that of concrete blocks, but sand is replaced with crushed plastic down to a three millimeter size. The method was patented in 2006 and began at the institute 24 years ago to help reduce environmental pollution.
Among its main advantages, Gaggino notes that these bricks insulate better than ordinary terracotta bricks. A wall measuring 15 centimeters thick can achieve similar thermal performance to a 30 centimeter wall built with standard bricks.
Gaggino also mentioned that all resistance tests were conducted in a laboratory, including compression, bending, fire, weathering, moisture, and frost tests. The results were satisfactory and an official thermal performance certificate for this component is possible.
She highlighted that a PET brick is made from 20 disposable bottles, underscoring the environmental relevance of the project. The bricks are completed with Portland cement as the binder and include a chemical additive that enhances the adhesion of plastic particles.
Construction and management technologies are transferred from CEVE to local and provincial governments, public and private institutions, cooperatives, and non governmental organizations. Through these transfers and with 50 trainings, houses have been built in Junín, Buenos Aires, Mendoza, and Altagracia.
Other manufacturers in the USA
Argentine bricks are not alone in the plastic brick movement. An American company named ByBlock also produces blocks from this material, known for its ease of processing.
The manufacturer has created modular machines that are simple to transport and can perform the crushing and compaction process. This enables on site production of bricks in various environments from commercial spaces to government buildings.
One key factor is that no cleaning or sorting of plastics is required. In this model, every ton of waste plastic can be redirected into one ton of plastic bricks. ByBlock has reached an agreement to implement its technology in the Boise metropolitan area in Idaho. The plan calls for using 72 tons of plastic sourced from local landfills to produce these recycled blocks.
Plastic exhibits a growing influence in construction. New applications appear regularly. Some projects explore experimental prototypes such as Trashpresso, a mobile recycling plant that processes plastic bottles into tiles for homes and buildings. The machine can operate using solar energy for the full cycle.
Other endeavors involve using plastic in paving roads or even buildings. Under the MR6 name, a Scottish company has launched an asphalt mix that reduces asphalt binder usage by about 10 percent.
There are already businesses using plastic from disposable coffee cups to create insulating walls or partition walls. All these efforts align with a circular economy, the shared aim of reducing waste in production and consumption to drive a more sustainable economy.
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