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Costa Rican firm uses recycled plastic to make construction blocks
Publish date: 2024-12-13
An environmentally focused business in Costa Rica has begun making construction blocks from a combination of recycled plastic and limestone. The Center for Regenerative Design & Collaboration (CRDC) began making the blocks on a single extrusion line in late October, Don Thomson, the group's CEO, said Oct. 31 at Global Plastics Summit 2018 in Chicago.
The product has been labeled Ecoblock. It's made from plastic waste that's shredded after being collected from rivers in the region, Thomson added. He said that river plastic waste is harder to clean than ocean waste plastic, so activated calcium has to be used.
Ecoblocks are 2.5-5 percent waste plastic by weight and 7-16 percent waste plastic by volume. The CRDC now can make around 4 million blocks per month. Thomson said the blocks can be used in low-cost housing. "The goal of the project is to take a zero waste approach to the resin market," he added.
The product has been labeled Ecoblock. It's made from plastic waste that's shredded after being collected from rivers in the region, Thomson added. He said that river plastic waste is harder to clean than ocean waste plastic, so activated calcium has to be used.
Ecoblocks are 2.5-5 percent waste plastic by weight and 7-16 percent waste plastic by volume. The CRDC now can make around 4 million blocks per month. Thomson said the blocks can be used in low-cost housing. "The goal of the project is to take a zero waste approach to the resin market," he added.
Source: Plastics News
