Scientists have determined that concrete rubble from destroyed buildings in Syria can safely be recycled into new concrete, paving the way for faster, cheaper, and a more sustainable way of rebuilding.
Syria, dealing with destruction from war and a recent earthquake, is cluttered with concrete rubble currently, which measures an estimated 40 tons. Scientists in Syria, the UK, and Turkey have successfully demonstrated that the use of recycled concrete to replace half of the aggregate in new concrete does not significantly affect its building performance.
This is the first time that concrete made from recycled rubble, created by war destroyed buildings, have been deemed safe. Recycled concrete has been produced prior to this is other locations, however, testing is needed in each region due to differences in local concrete production.
Professor Abdulkader Rashwani, a concrete expert from Sham University in Aleppo, Syria, led the study.
“It was our duty to help the people there,” Rashwani said. “A lot of people needed our help, so we went there and forgot about all the bad consequences. We have now started to go to some local councils and help them to put some plans in place for the future. We can at least try to make this region safer and give people some hope.”