Recycling of Polyethylene Waste to Produce Plastic Cement

Disposal of plastic waste in environment is considered to be a big problem due to its very low biodegradability and presence in large quantities. Therefore, finding alternative methods of disposing waste by using friendly methods are becoming a major research issue. In this research, high density polyethylene waste is mixed with Portland cement to investigate the possibility to produce plastic cement, and study the effect of replacing sand by fine polyethylene waste with different percentage on the properties of product. The experiments were done by using the waste of polyethylene packages include bottle and food crates in the range of 10% to 80% by volume as a short reinforcement structure. The results show that there is a possibility to produce plastic cement from polyethylene waste and Portland cement by using 60% and 40%, respectively. In addition, their density was decreased, ductility increased, and the workability improved, which lead to produce lightweight materials. (C) 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.