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10 Recycled Building Materials Of The Future
Recycled building materials are growing in popularity as the construction sector transitions to a zero-carbon future.
Utilising recyclable and environmentally friendly materials, scientists and researchers are continually creating new construction techniques.
In the realm of architecture, we say that a house has a 50-year lifespan. The home then has to be renovated and maintained. The new owner of a house frequently has some modifications in mind when purchasing it. For instance, a new owner might demolish walls, put in new windows, and create new rooms.
However, what happens to all the demolition debris? How can you recycle it and use it in your upcoming construction?
What Is Recycled Building Material?
Any building material that is removed from a construction site for reuse falls under this category.
On a construction site, contractors and builders can recycle a variety of materials. For instance, builders can utilise recovered wood, plastics, rubber, and crushed bricks as aggregate for concrete.
The best thing about recycled materials is that they provide for a lot of creative freedom, and any architect worth their salt will seize the chance to exercise their imagination.
10 Examples of Recycled Building Material
Ten instances of recycled building materials currently being used in construction are shown below.
1. Clay Bricks
Bricks made of clay have been used as building materials since 7000 BCE.
They can live for 500 years. Since they have such a lengthy lifespan, you could theoretically reuse them for numerous construction projects.
These bricks can be reused by builders for tasks like building new walls, but they can also be crushed into chips and used as aggregate in concrete or as a substitute for gravel.
But it goes further than that. Additionally, they can crush them into dust, utilise it as fill sand, or turn it into new bricks.
2. Plant-Based Polyurethane Foam Boards
You can use polyurethane, a form of plastic, as insulation in your home. Additionally, employing plant oils can help producers create plant-based plastic that is better for the environment. For instance, oil from kelp, hemp, and bamboo can be used to make sustainable insulating boards.
High-quality sound insulation and strong heat transfer resistance are two advantages of plant-based polyurethane boards. Insect and mould resistance are additional benefits of plant-based polyurethane.
Read our article on home insulation to learn more about insulation and the reasons it’s important for your house.
3. Hempcrete
A sustainable substitute for concrete is hempcrete. The substance is made of lime-bound natural hemp fibres, which together resemble concrete.
Hempcrete is carbon negative, in contrast to cement manufacture, which accounts for 8% of world CO2 emissions. Hempcrete is carbon negative, which means it absorbs carbon dioxide rather than discharging it into the atmosphere.
It’s environmentally friendly and so well-insulated that it satisfies most criteria without the need for additional insulation.
The material’s lack of load-bearing capacity is its only drawback. Because of this, hempcrete requires a steel or wood frame to support the roof structure of your home.
4. Ecobricks
Global effort Ecobricks targets the pollution caused by plastic waste. An Ecobrick is a plastic brick made from a plastic bottle that has been filled with small plastic trash. After that, you may construct things like vegetable gardens or even walls with these “plastic bricks.”
Plastic can take up to 450 years to break down, which is nearly as long as a clay brick. Ecobricks are a cost-effective alternative to standard bricks as a result.
5. Bamboo
Bamboo has long been used in building. However, bamboo has emerged as one of the most environmentally friendly building materials as a result of recent studies uncovering previously unknown qualities.
Although technically a species of grass and not wood, bamboo is incredibly strong and flexible. It is more resilient than concrete in compression and three times stronger than wood beams. Bamboo is more powerful than steel when it comes to tensile strength (the capacity to withstand tension).
After its original use, bamboo is recyclable. Manufacturers, for instance, can reduce bamboo used in building to its fibres.
Bamboo cutlery, bedding, and flooring made of bamboo fibres are examples of common bamboo items.
6. Rubber Tyres
Excellent recycled building materials include tyres. They are made of both natural and artificial rubber. Rubber is a general term that covers a wide range of substances, each of which has distinct qualities.
Non-roadworthy tyres are discarded and frequently wind up in garbage yards. There are numerous creative ways to incorporate tyres into your home, so this is not perfect.
Here are a few instances:
- To build a retaining wall, compact the typres with earth.
- They can be crushed into little bits and used as paving.
- Create your own vegetable gardens with old tyres.
- Tyre swings, anyone?
7. Rammed Earth
Rammed earth construction is a trend that is sweeping the globe. When utilised in your home, it offers a number of benefits that make for higher insulation and thermal comfort.
These walls frequently consist of earth that has been removed from the construction site and compacted. It is then combined with cement to make it rigid and hard.
Rammed earth has another trick up its sleeve, though, and you can use it to knock down the wall and use it for something else. For instance, rammed earth can be crushed and used as fill sand, to be compacted once more, or in concrete.
8. Newspaper Wood
Paper is transformed back into wood by newspaper wood.
This wood is made of paper sheets that have been bonded together and compressed under great pressure to form a solid mass that can be carved and sliced into. The building sector is familiar with the idea of compression because plywood is produced in a similar way.
Newspaper wood is yet an emerging substance. As a result, it isn’t employed in the process of building a house. However, as scientists investigate and refine its qualities, it is being used in homes as flooring or a “timber” finish.
9. Polycarbonate Sheeting
A common building material today for roofs or wall panels is polycarbonate sheeting. The thermoplastic polymers used to create the sheeting are fully recyclable.
Regarding sustainability, plastic doesn’t exactly have the best reputation. Having said that, these translucent panels may be melted down and reused repeatedly.
They may construct a lovely and elegant facade that lets in light while maintaining privacy.
In the end, polycarbonate sheeting has the potential to become a more sustainable material with a range of advantages.
10. Chip[s] Board
This product is a prime example of experimenting with various methods and creatively displacing single-use materials. Rowan Minkley and Robert Nicoll invented chipboard, which is not to be confused with chipboard.
They developed their solution as a sustainable replacement for shipboard and similar single-use goods. The chipboard is constructed of plastic that is manufactured from potato waste. This material is produced using a more environmentally friendly method than other plastics and is biodegradable.
To create a lovely board, this bioplastic combines with potato peels, repurposed wood, bamboo, and other organic by-products.