The Project

MATERIALS FOR BUILDING AND SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURES, RECYCLED AGGREGATES

Materials for Sustainable Building and Infrastructure - Recycled Aggregates (MEISAR) is the research project financed by the Autonomous Region of Sardinia that wants to develop an eco-sustainable chain of concrete constructions by enhancing recycled aggregates.

The management of environmental and economic problems related to construction waste is an important issue for the construction industry considering the needs of sustainable development.

The reuse of recycled materials or production process waste may limit the extraction of raw materials, thus contributing to the protection of natural deposits, whose exploitation is very complex and subjected to strong regulatory constraints.

The project Materials for Sustainable Building and Infrastructure - Recycled Aggregates (MEISAR) try to respond to this problem. Specifically, the project is an action of the Top-Down cluster financed by the Autonomous Region of Sardinia through: POR Sardegna FESR 2014/2020 - ASSE PRIORITARIO I “RICERCA SCIENTIFICA, SVILUPPO TECNOLOGICO E INNOVAZIONE” Azione 1.1.4 Sostegno alle attività collaborative di R&S per lo sviluppo di nuove tecnologie sostenibili, di nuovi prodotti e servizi.

The MEISAR aims to bring further contributions of knowledge and results that can be identified in three macro areas:

  1. Water and recycled materials;

  2. The durability of concrete with recycled aggregates;

  3. verification of the economic and environmental sustainability of recycled aggregates.

The page will be completed soon.

ECO-SUSTAINABLE SUPPLY CHAIN

Cluster Projects aim to connect companies operating in the territory. Their presence has two main objectives:

  1. To face and support the problems of the research activities carried out by competent public and/or private bodies;

  2. To carry out applied research activities with immediate economic and social effects on the territory.

The companies involved in the project offer their expertise in concrete production and will be able to activate an effective and suitable production chain of recycled concrete. The waste materials produced by them and currently sent to landfill, could have an immediate use.

Similarly, the Prefabrication companies involved in MEISAR could also develop a line of production of prefabricated elements made of recycled concrete, drastically reducing the waste materials with obvious environmental and economic advantages.

Product sheets, price lists and technical specifications, will be developed during project with the aim of improving the production processes of the partner companies.

BUILDING DEMOLITION

For several years in Italy the production of construction demolition waste increased continuously. Thus, the progressive awareness of environmental needs have led to increasing attention on this topic. It is clear how the recycling of these materials is of fundamental importance.

The nature of the materials deriving from construction demolition waste is extremely variable and consequently the knowledge of their characteristics is one of the most important and urgent problems related to the use of recycled materials in new construction. In the specific case of Italy, the civil construction sector is characterized by a great variability of building materials. Consider, for example, the Apulian limestone, the typical inert of the Po basin, the hard rocks typical of other areas. The storage site of waste, located in different areas of the Italy, are used by different customers, delivering very different materials. For this reason, recycled products have different properties and therefore each plant should equip itself with tools aimed at characterizing its product.

Project MEISAR Targets

OPEN DATABASES ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC

In order to spread the knowledge of the aggregates, two databases will be published on this site:

Technical regulations on recycled materials_

Check the standards database

State of the art of the scientific literature on the themes of MEISAR Project_

Check the scientific literature

GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION OF AUTHORISED RECYCLING FACILITIES

With the aim of creating a short supply chain for recycled aggregates, the geographical location of authorised recycling plants will be carried out.

See the location of recycling plants

THEORETICAL-EXPERIMENTAL CHARACTERIZATION OF RECYCLED AGGREGATES

The recycled aggregates selected for experimentation will be characterised from a physical, chemical and mechanical point of view.

COMPATIBILITY CHECKS AND ECONOMIC-ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY OF RECYCLED MATERIALS

Development of market analysis report. Drafting of product sheets, price list and technical specifications.

DEFINITION OF OPTIMAL CONCRETE MIXES

Definition of a standard procedure to determine the concrete mix on the basis of the physical-mechanical performance of recyled aggregates (AR). Resistance and durability tests to qualify the concrete manufactured with AR. Analysis of the production and casting costs of recycled concrete.

THEORETICAL EXPERIMENTAL PHYSICAL-MECHANICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF REINFORCED AND UNREINFORCED RECYCLED CONCRETE PRODUCTS.

Strength and durability tests of recycled concrete products. Development of effective and suitable calculation codes to simplify the design considering strength and durability of materials. Analysis of the production costs of manufactured products.

AWARENESS RAISING AMONG LOCAL AUTHORITIES AND STAKEHOLDERS IN THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR

Seminars and Congresses organized during the course of the Project. Development of the website dedicated to the MEISAR Project.