Boral joins councils in recycled rubber asphalt demonstration project

Building and construction products manufacturer Boral has taken part in the largest crumbed rubber asphalt demonstration project in Australia, providing 2,000 tonnes of pavement material in addition to 1,200 tonnes of controlled asphalt mix to be paved across eight local Sydney council streets.

Comprising recycled rubber from end-of-life car and truck tyres, crumbed rubber asphalt aims to improve the sustainability and longevity of council roads.

The Reusing Rubber: Recycling Tyres for Roads demonstration project by Southern Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (SSROC) aims to make council roads more sustainable, reduce capital and operating expenditure by extending road life, and create a local market for old car and truck tyres.

An initial 3,600 standard passenger car tyres or 2,400 car and 490 truck tyres combined will be used in the crumbed rubber asphalt trial project.

Boral is partnering with eight local councils utilising varying levels of crumb rubber – Bayside Council, Burwood Council, City of Sydney Council, Woollahra Council, Randwick City Council, Sutherland Shire Council, Northern Beaches Council, and Inner-west City Council.

Boral laid its first pavement in early June, with the remaining works across the Councils to be completed in the coming weeks.

Executive General Manager, Asphalt at Boral Tim Richards said: “This is a huge-scale project that will drive benefits for the broader industry and governments of all levels as we look to better understand how recycled rubber asphalt can be tweaked for maximum performance.

“At Boral, we are committed to decarbonisation, and as part of this, we leverage our facilities to process recyclable materials such as construction waste, otherwise destined for landfill.

“It’s promising to see councils drive initiatives that demonstrate the benefits of repurposing waste, such as creating new roads through recycled tyres.

“We are eager to find ways to maximise benefits to the community and on road projects through innovative construction materials and methodse.”

Over an initial 12-month period, the performance of each asphalt mix will be monitored in a range of applications and conditions to measure product benefits.

The project will generate comprehensive data on the use of recycled rubber-based treatments on local roads and is expected to contribute to the development of crumb rubber asphalt specifications in future projects.

Picture: Boral