Sources: Braskem America, Philadelphia; CP staff
Fizzano Brothers Concrete Products is helping demonstrate the engineering properties and commercial potential of Resin8, a fine aggregate derived from post-consumer plastic waste, in a concrete masonry unit (CMU) installation at the Braskem America Innovation and Technology Center, Pittsburgh. The Philadelphia producer has teamed with Resin8 developer, Center for Regenerative Design & Collaboration (CRDC), on testing the material’s viability as a small volume (≤ 10 percent) substitute for ASTM C33 aggregate.
The Fizzano Bros. CMUs form a new, 15-ft. high wall within the expanding Braskem I & T Center, dedicated to post-consumer plastics re-use and chemical recycling research. “We are proud to be the first to use Resin8 blocks in North America,” says Braskem America CEO Mark Nikolich. “Innovations in recycling such as this are important for the proper management of plastic waste, which allows us to continue leveraging the benefits of plastics while diverting these materials from the environment.”
“Resin8 is a working example of the Circular Economy that has the potential to scale globally,” adds CRDC Chairman Donald Thomson. “We are successfully transitioning the plastic waste stream into an appreciating value stream for the concrete, construction, and housing industries. We take a zero waste approach to resource management, which fosters a co-existence with our natural environment and provides measurable societal and financial yields.”
Costa Rica-based CRDC has worked with Fizzano Bros. through its U.S. operation in New Jersey. Officials from both organizations discussed Resin8 processing and the aggregate’s suitability for CMU during the Product Development and Creative Concepts Forum at the National Concrete Masonry Association 2020 convention, February 22-24 in Salt Lake City.