Page 14 - LWFC Catalog

PRESENTATION ABSTRACTS
PRESENTATION ABSTRACTS

10AM - Arqlite©: Transforming Non-recyclable Plastics intoLightweight
10:50AM Construction Materials More than 350 million tons of plastics are
discarded every year. Of these nearly 50% cannot be recycled cost-
effectively using existing technologies. As a result, annually, nearly 170
million tons of non-degradable plastic waste accumulates in landfills,
dumps and watercourses, thereby polluting the environment. Arqlite
has developed a pioneering process to upcycle non-recyclable plastics
Wednesday into aggregates. Our proprietary mechanical conversion process cost-
effectively turns 1 ton of non-recyclable plastic waste into 1 ton of
October Arqlite Smart Gravel. The process is energy efficient and presents a trivial
consumable water demand (<0.05 ton per ton of production). Arqlite’s
20 Smart Gravel is a filler that is: (a) available in a variety of sizes: With the
capacity of being produced on demand, the aggregate comes in three
sizes: micromini (1.5-3.2 mm), mini (3-12 mm) and Regular (12-25 mm),
and (b) 3 times lighter (ρ = 0.9 g/cm3) than typical mineral gravel while
offering 10 times better insulation (k = 0.25 W/m.K). Importantly, the Smart
Gravel is inert and thereby well-suited for uses wherein it may contact
moisture or vegetation. Recently, Arqlite has commissioned a new state-
of-the-art manufacturing facility in California which is introducing Smart
Gravel for use in structural and non-structural concrete in the U.S. market.
These efforts are ongoing with our partners and collaborators including
CEMEX, U.S. Concrete, Quikrete, and the Los Angeles Dept of Water and
Power.

10AM - Large-Scale Testing of Lightweight Cellular Concrete Backfill for
10:50AM Retaining Walls Lightweight Cellular Concrete (LCC) offers a number
of advantages for use as a backfill material for retaining structures
in comparison to conventional soil backfill. This lightweight material
decreases the stress imposed on compressible layers which significantly
reduces the potential for settlement and damage to utility lines. LCC also
reduces the active earth pressures imposed on a retaining wall. LCC can
be placed rapidly and is self-leveling. Despite these advantages, there
is relatively little information to guide engineers in designing cantilever
or Mechanically Stabilized Earth (MSE) retaining walls using LCC backfills.
To provide basic information on earth pressures wall displacements, and
failure mechanisms for these structures, a series of large-scale tests have
been performed at Brigham Young University. The test walls were 3 m (10
ft) tall and 3 m (10 ft) wide and the backfill extended 3.8 m (12.5 ft) behind
the wall. The backfill was contained within a box with steel beams to limit
lateral deflections and create a 2D failure geometry. Surcharge pressure
was applied to the surface of the LCC over an area extending 1.8 m (6
ft) behind the wall. Tests were performed with both cantilever walls with
unreinforced LCC and MSE wall panels with ribbed-strip reinforcements.
Comparison tests were performed without any wall in place. Without a
wall, failure was induced with a surcharge pressure of about 275 kPa (40
psi), despite the fact that the compressive strength of the LCC was about
688 kPa (100 psi). The steep, shallow failure surface was consistent with
a Rankine active failure with an angle of 62°. For the tests with walls in
place, failure did not occur until the surcharge pressure reached about
480 kPa (70 psi) owing to the increased lateral resistance wall resistance.
Failure was ductile with increased lateral displacement at about the same
surcharge pressure. The failure mechanism was bilinear with a vertical