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Municipal Solid Waste as a Substitute for Virgin Materials in the Construction Industry: A Review

Author

Listed:
  • Liliana Lizárraga-Mendiola

    (Academic Area of Engineering and Architecture, Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, km 4.5 Pachuca-Tulancingo Highway, Pachuca 42184, Mexico)

  • Luis D. López-León

    (Academic Area of Engineering and Architecture, Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, km 4.5 Pachuca-Tulancingo Highway, Pachuca 42184, Mexico)

  • Gabriela A. Vázquez-Rodríguez

    (Academic Area of Chemistry, Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, km 4.5 Pachuca-Tulancingo Highway, Pachuca 42184, Mexico)

Abstract

Municipal solid waste (MSW) requires adequate management to mitigate the negative impacts caused by its poor disposal in the environment. It is composed of several fractions, such as organic waste, paper, cardboard, metals, plastic, and glass, among other valuable materials. An area of opportunity for its recovery is the construction industry, which currently consumes around 3000 million tons of natural resources annually and is responsible for 34% of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. There are examples of the worldwide reuse of MSW in construction materials: plastics have been incorporated as substitutes for sand in the production of concrete and pavements; paper as a hygrothermal and lighting regulator in buildings; and glass has been reused as fine aggregate in concrete mixtures, among others. In this paper, we revised how these MSW fractions have been used for designing and producing sustainable construction materials, thereby favoring a circular economy approach and reducing their landfilling. Opportunity areas for these materials to be developed and applied were also identified focusing on Latin America and the Caribbean.

Suggested Citation

  • Liliana Lizárraga-Mendiola & Luis D. López-León & Gabriela A. Vázquez-Rodríguez, 2022. "Municipal Solid Waste as a Substitute for Virgin Materials in the Construction Industry: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(24), pages 1-20, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:24:p:16343-:d:996018
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Emily Elhacham & Liad Ben-Uri & Jonathan Grozovski & Yinon M. Bar-On & Ron Milo, 2020. "Global human-made mass exceeds all living biomass," Nature, Nature, vol. 588(7838), pages 442-444, December.
    2. Adewumi John Babafemi & Branko Šavija & Suvash Chandra Paul & Vivi Anggraini, 2018. "Engineering Properties of Concrete with Waste Recycled Plastic: A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-26, October.
    3. Huang, Lizhen & Krigsvoll, Guri & Johansen, Fred & Liu, Yongping & Zhang, Xiaoling, 2018. "Carbon emission of global construction sector," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 81(P2), pages 1906-1916.
    4. West, James & Schandl, Heinz, 2013. "Material use and material efficiency in Latin America and the Caribbean," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 19-27.
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