Roads and Surfaces

How Glass Benefits The Roads and Surfaces Industry

Steep maintenance costs of the highway systems has paved the way for a much needed change in conventional roads and pavement. Using waste glass material in the roads and surfaces industry solves two problems at once: recycling a glass-based mineral that would otherwise go to the landfill, and improving national infrastructure with a superior and cost-effective solution. Crushed glass has been found to work as an excellent aggregate in asphalt pavement, and has already been implemented in multiple states across the country due to its resilient nature. Applications stretch beyond asphalt to bridges, parking lots, cement sidewalks, street repair, and all road work use.

Key Benefits of Using Glass in Roads and Surfaces:

• Durable, high quality, long lasting material
• Cost effective aggregate, 10-20% asphalt replacement
• Increase strength and resistance to water damage, fatigue, and rutting
• Less maintenance due to advanced durability and decreased risk of potholes
• Easier mobility than gravel for contractors and workers

What is Glassphalt?

Glassphalt is a variety of asphalt that is comprised of crushed glass. It has been used as an alternative to conventional bituminous asphalt pavement since the early 1970s.  Typically, there is about 10%-20% glass by weight in glassphalt, and recent studies have shown significant improvement of asphalt concrete mixtures using a crushed glass modifier. Because glass materials are brittle and rich in silicon, the strength and resistance to water damage of glassphalt pavement is higher than ordinary asphalt. Glass can also be recycled continuously without changing its composition and properties, making it incredible durable. As such, parking lots made with glassphalt report fewer potholes and require much less maintenance.

Applications Benefiting In The Roads and Surfaces Industry:

Informational Sheet(s)