Sustainability Problem:
Landfills and sewage plants produce methane, which is a greenhouse gas and a contributor to climate change. Moreover, durability of concrete structures is always questionable.
Technology:
University of British Columbia engineers have developed a more resilient type of concrete using recycled tires.
Recycled-rubber roads are not new. But using the polymer fibres from tires has the unique benefit of potentially improving the resilience of concrete and extending its lifespan by reducing crack formation by more than 90 per cent compared to regular concrete.
Adding the fibre to concrete could shrink the tire industry’s carbon footprint and also reduce the construction industry’s emissions, since cement is a major source of GHG. One recycled tire produces 1kg or fiber that can be used to make concrete stronger. Almost three billion tires are produced each year around the world that ultimately land up in landfills. Therefore, these tires can be recycled to generate close to three billion kilograms of fibre.
Stakeholders:
Landfill / waste plant operators, Waste management operators, Civil engineers, urban landscape developers, city government
Implementation:
- Since adding the fibre to the concrete leads to improved durability with better resistance to loads and cracking, this technology could be used for concrete structures like buildings, roads, dams and bridges while reducing landfill waste and lowering the carbon footprint of the city. Introducing this new technology via smaller pilot projects in infrastructure development is suggested as the first step to implementation
- Expand scope and application of technology to bigger infrastructure and development projects
- Monitor the progress of this technology and record data on how it has reduced the environmental impact and lowered maintenance costs
Article: https://www.dsiac.org/resources/news/when-rubber-hits-road-recycled-tires-fibers-create-stronger-concrete-reduce-waste
uni: hps2120
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makeasmartcity 
This is a cleaver way to reuse tire rubber, surely an unexplored avenue beyond roads. Curious to know how it would work in hotter climates because changes in its elasticity will affect the strength of the building itself.
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A quick research on polymer fibres suggests that most of the fibres that are used the mix like glass, basalt, carbon fibres etc are heat resistant and have high tensile strengths. Please refer to this link for details –>http://www.build-on-prince.com/fiber-reinforced-polymers.html
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