A
debate is now raging within the minds of many Jamaicans as it relates to the
future Construction Material of our Roads, with Minister of Transport Works and
Housing, Dr Omar Davies expressing a desire to include Concrete in the mix
along with Asphalt for future Road Contracts as stated in “Concrete could be used on Roads”,
published May 14 2014 by Latonya Linton, The
Jamaica Information Service.
There’s
a push by some Jamaicans fed up with the constant need to repair our Roads for
a switch to using Cement rather than Asphalt as stated in “Carib
Cement Rolls Out Road Plans-Says Cement Is Better Than Asphalt”, published
02-09-2014, The Jamaica Gleaner.
CCCL
(Carib Cement Company Limited) is also advocating a change to Concrete,
pointing out that it’s longer lasting and better for vehicles in general.
According to the article “Asphalt
vs Concrete roads: Which is the best option for Jamaica?”, published
Thursday, 5 June 2014, All
About Jamaica Views, there are a few general facts about Concrete and Asphalt
that the public needs to be aware of:
1.
15%-20% reduction in fuel consumption by
Concrete roads
2.
50% more money is needed to build
Concrete Road than an Asphalt road
3.
Asphalt has a lifespan of 15 years
4.
Asphalt roads are easier to maintain and
repair and accessible within an hour after being repaired
5.
Asphalt Roads are susceptible to
fluctuations in the price of Oil
6.
Concrete has a lifespan of 20 to 50
years
7.
Concrete Roads are difficult to maintain
and hard to recycle unused Concrete
8.
Concrete Roads can be laid as slabs
instead of being poured to harden, increasing deployment
9.
Concrete Roads require proper Drainage
as Water isn't absorbed as with Asphalt making them very slippery
Asphalt from Rubber Tyres
– New lease via SKD Haulage and Distribution Recycling Initiative
Asphalt
may still be favoured by many, especially contractors who’ve been in the road
repair game and have invested heavily in equiptment designed for Asphalt. For
them, having to get equiptment to use concrete would be very difficult financially,
especially given the fickle nature of Government Road contracts outside of an
Election Period.
An
even more compelling arguement for the continued use of Asphalt is Discovery Bay, St Ann-based SKDP (SKD Haulage
and Distribution) plan to invest some US$600,000 in a waste-to-profit
initiative to begin this July 2014 to convert Rubber Tyres into Asphalt as
described in “Old
Tyres for road construction”, published Thursday, May 29, 2014 11:51 AM, The Jamaica Observer.
According
to the CEO of SKDP, Sherold Philibert, his company can convert 60% of the
Rubber Tyres from the estimated 1 million discarded Tyres per year into Asphaltic
Rubber, which can be mixed into regular Asphalt for the purpose of Road
Construction and Repair. Whether or not it’ll be more economical than Asphalt
remains to be seen, but it will at least solve the problem of the recycling of
Rubber Tyre waste piling up in the Riverton City Dump, which poses the
potential to cause more Fires as they did in on Sunday March 16th
2014.
This
machine works in a manner very similar to my idea of using Solar Powered Vacuum
Pyrolysis to convert Tyres into Gasoline and Diesel Fuel as described in my blog article entitled “How
to make Diesel and Gasoline from the Pyrolysis of Car Tyres and Plastics -
Jamaican Riverton City Dump Fire Ecological Disaster solution that reduces
Jamaica's Oil Bill”.
As
with my idea, the Tyres would have to be masticated in order to be efficiently
converted. CEO of SKDP, Sherold Philibert, made his plans known during a launch
for his initiative in a presentation at UWI (University of the West Indies) on
Wednesday May 28th 2014. Already, he has the blessing of the
following institutions and companies:
1.
Ministry of Industry, Investment, and
Commerce
2.
Local Tyre dealers
3.
NSWMA (National Solid Waste Management
Agency)
4.
JAMPRO (Jamaica Promotions)
I
suspect the CEO of SKDP Sherold Philibert, stuck to the making Asphalt instead
of hinting at the production of Diesel and Gasoline, also by-products of Vacuum
Pyrolysis, as he didn't want to upset the Gasoline Retailers and Petrojam with
any intentions to make illegal Gasoline or Diesel.
Minister
of Industry, Investment, and Commerce, Anthony Hylton, who was present during
the launch, seemed to support the project on the basis that it would create
jobs and reduce future incidence of Fires at the Riverton City Dump, quote:
“The raw materials are found right here in Jamaica, in very large quantities.
This will open up opportunities for many other players in the industry. In
addition to the absorption of used Tyres, it will decrease the Government’s
costs associated with solid waste disposal, and reduce the number of new
landfills required to store used Tyres”.
But
the secret is out as it relates to making diesel and Gasoline from the Vacuum
Pyrolysis of the Rubber Tyres as thoroughly described in my blog article entitled “How
to make Diesel and Gasoline from the Pyrolysis of Car Tyres and Plastics -
Jamaican Riverton City Dump Fire Ecological Disaster solution that reduces
Jamaica's Oil Bill”.
SKDP,
despite their noble intentions, will find it very hard to secure Rubber Tyres
cheaply in light of the fact that Gasoline is now closing in rapidly on JA$200
per liter, making any alternatives to Gasoline or Diesel viable and thus
persons less likely to return Tyres knowing that they can make fuel from Tyres.
Asphalt appears to be a
Winner – Solar Roadways a Global Dark horse in the Year of the Sheep
Thus
far, Asphalt appears to be winning this road Building, Design and Repair
Contract War in the near and distant future. The longevity of Concrete benefits
the Government and the people who depend on Roads for Transportation in terms
of their being less repair needed and the longevity of their usefulness, but it
also means fewer contracts for maintenance, something Road Repair Contractors
might not like.
I
see a slow adoption path for Roads made from Concrete, albeit Concrete will get
extensive use in building sidewalks and Parking Lots, should the Ministry of
Transport Works and Housing start leaning in that direction. As for Rubber Tyre
Asphalt, it’ll gain Government Support.
But
if fuel alternatives to the rising costs of Gasoline and Diesel Fuel aren’t
found, then expect to see other competitors use Rubber for Tyres, Plastic and
even Organic Material in Vacuum Pyrolysis Furnaces to make illegal Diesel or
Gasoline as that would have an immediate market and be more useful.
As
for me personally, I’m leaning more towards the idea of using Molten Glass to
make Roads, which the French currently use in some of their Roadways. This as
the very same Fresnel Lens can be made into a massive array and use to melt
Sand be it black or white as well as broken Glass to make molten, pourable
Silica Glass into Tiles.
This
can then be tempered via adding certain additives and made into a Tessellation
of Tiles in a manner similar to interlocking slabs of Concrete and thus used on
not only Roadways but also on Driveways, Parking Lots, Play Areas as well as
Roofing Tiles similar to the Brusaw’s Solar Roadways as described
in my blog article entitled “The
Brusaw's Solar Roadways score US$1 million on IndieGogo and US$750,000 from US
FHA - Powering Roadways one Parking Lot at a Time”.
Best
of all, due to the fact that Silica Glass is as strong as Concrete but can be
heated and made molten via the process as show in the video above, recycling
Broken Silica Glass Tiles used for roadways would make it the ideal material
for roadways.
What
do you think dear reader?
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