Mineral building and construction waste

A total of almost 200 t of mineral building and construction waste is generated every year and mostly deposited in landfills, or downcycled for use as low-quality secondary materials. This common practice sharply contrasts with the considerable raw material demands of the building and construction sector. One of the pivotal elements for the implementation of the German Resource Efficiency Programme is the identification of valuable properties of different construction waste materials and the detailed quantification of their potentials. Separate collection and processing of construction waste for the purpose of recycling raw materials fit for use in the production of building materials is common practice for asphalt nowadays. However, many other building materials like gypsum or brick cannot be recycled at present, merely production residues can be treated for re-entry into the production process. To close loops, and particularly to exploit used materials from building construction, novel recovery strategies are required. One example for innovative recovery is recycled concrete (R concrete) that contains aggregate from the processing of used concrete and masonry. This very promising recovery pathway was introduced in southwest Germany with ifeu help and support. However, parallel efforts should aim to reinforce existing recovery pathways. Mineral construction waste is traditionally downcycled for use in earthworks or as road construction materials. The establishment of reliable quality standards and comprehensive quality assurance are required to boost the use of recycled materials. These are key steps to promote acceptance among builders and building contractors. A major future recycling challenge is the processing of soil and soil-like construction waste in accordance with the raw material standards and requirements of the building materials industry or other suitable outlets.

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Projects

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Mapping of the Anthropogenic Layer V

Strategy development for a national urban mining process

On behalf of the German Federal Environment Agency, ifeu Heidelberg is investigating how a national urban mining strategy can be established to return anthropogenic deposits to the economic cycle as…

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Bodenaushubmassen als Rohstoffquelle

Aufbereitung über Kieswerke

Das ifeu Heidelberg untersuchte, ob und in welchem Umfang die Nutzung von Bodenaushub als Rohstoff zur Ressourcenschonung, Ressourceneffizienz und zum Klimaschutz beitragen kann. Der Fokus lag dabei…

Wood construction as a solution strategy for sustainable urban development

Timber construction can be integrated into urban planning processes as a resource-efficient building block, both for the redensification of existing urban quarters, the revitalisation of commercial…

CORE – Resource-efficient and climate-optimised concrete in Berlin

Bilanzierung von CO₂-reduziertem und ressourcenschonende Beton für das Land Berlin.

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KartAL IV

The overriding objective of this research project is to develop and substantiate an urban mining strategy by tapping into resource-saving potential in the production, use and dismantling of buildings,…

KartAL III

Systemic thinking is required to develop a high-quality recycling system aimed at avoiding downcycling where possible through reductions in quality. The entire value chain must be taken into account,…

Abfallvermeidung in der Baubranche

Im Auftrag des Umweltministeriums Baden-Württemberg und der Landesanstalt für Umwelt haben wir zahlreiche Informationen zur Abfallvermeidung in der Baubranche gezielt für Bauherren, Architekten und…

Masonry rubble for resource-conserving construction

To what extent is masonry rubble reclaimed from demolished buildings suitable for use in resource-conserving building construction? Can this material known as type 2 aggregate be processed to make R…

R concrete – resource-conserving concrete – the next generation of material

The research project’s intended impulse towards resource conservation in construction can only be implemented in building practice in the long term if the production of resource-conserving R concrete…

Landfill mining – reclamation of landfills

Depending on the time at which they were filled, the domestic waste landfill sites used in Germany before 2005 are essentially a large reservoir of recyclable materials. The project showed that these…