Use of Plastic in Road Construction

Abstract

India a developing nation which is going through Rapid Infrastructure Development has done a significant progress in construction Industry.With around 6.3 million kilometers of roads covering the entire nation, India is now the country with the biggest road network in the world. India has many road networks which connects villages to districts, Districts to districts using district roadways. States are connects using state highways and national highways which connects multiple states on its way. With this type of infrastructure development in a country it becomes a very great factor of extensive growth of Commercial vehicle for transportation. In India up to 60% of total goods transportation is majorly done using Road Transportation, therefore it becomes very crucial to construct roads for the development of the country.

Introduction

India, with the world’s largest road network, heavily relies on road transport for goods movement. Bitumen, a key material in road construction, can be partially replaced with plastic waste, offering both economic and environmental benefits. Plastic waste—particularly types like LDPE and HDPE—is non-biodegradable and abundant in urban landfills. When blended with bitumen in road construction, it improves road quality and durability while reducing plastic pollution.

Key Benefits of Plastic Roads:

1. Longer Lifespan: Roads last up to 50% longer than conventional ones.

2. Higher Durability: Reduced cracking, potholes, and wear.

3. Better Wear and Skid Resistance: More resilient to flooding and safer due to better traction.

4. Lower Carbon Emissions: Less bitumen used, thus reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

5. Economical: Lower construction and maintenance costs.

India first adopted this technology in 2002 in Chennai, and it’s gaining popularity across the country due to its sustainability and potential for employment and industrial growth.

Objectives:

• Maximize use of plastic in road construction.

• Conduct performance tests on aggregates and bitumen mixed with plastic.

• Identify optimal plastic percentage for improved road performance.

• Promote sustainable waste management by reusing plastic in infrastructure.

Methodology:

The plastic is collected from various sources like landfills and recycling plants. Then it goes through several steps:

1. Segregation: Only usable plastic types like LDPE/HDPE are selected.

2. Cleaning & Drying: To ensure proper adhesion in bitumen mix.

3. Shredding: Cut into 2.36 mm size for uniform mixing.

4. Mixing: Shredded plastic is combined with bitumen and coated on aggregates.

Testing:

Tests on Aggregates:

• Impact Value Test: Measures toughness (results improve with plastic).

• Abrasion Test: Checks resistance to wear (improves significantly with plastic).

• Water Absorption & Specific Gravity: Indicates density and porosity.

Tests on Bitumen:

• Flash & Fire Point: Determines ignition safety (increases with plastic).

• Softening Point: Shows thermal stability (rises with plastic).

• Penetration Test: Measures hardness/consistency (decreases, indicating more hardness).

Results:

Plastic-modified bitumen improves road material properties:

• Impact resistance improves (value drops from 10.34% to 3.26%).

• Abrasion resistance improves (value drops from 14 to 7.2).

• Softening point, flash point, and fire point all increase, enhancing thermal stability.

• Penetration values decrease, indicating harder and more durable roads.

Conclusion

By conducting this research, it is concluded that utilizing plastic in road construction can be very advantageous for mitigating environmental degradation and decreasing the reliance on bitumen in road building. The pavements created with plastic bituminous materials offer numerous benefits and advantages in comparison to standard bitumen pavements. The performance of the plastic bituminous pavements is observed to be superior to that of conventional bituminous pavements. In conclusion, the incorporation of plastic waste has been shown to be highly beneficial to the environment by diminishing the risks associated with plastic disposal to some extent. This also fosters the advancement of sustainable infrastructure projects for future generations. Such developments can establish a strong infrastructure framework within the transportation sector.

References

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Copyright

Copyright © 2025 Prakash Jode, Sumitsingh Chauhan, Vishaka Sevatkar, Sakshi Kale, Vishal Sarkar, Amol Bhoyar. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.