Characterizing steel waste and analyzing its use as a material in pavement constructions

Abstract

The boom in the construction of big engineering projects has boosted the demand of steel, which has in turn increased the production of steel waste. This is cause for environmental same time, the exploitation of non-renewable natural resources like stone aggregates is also deteriorating ecosystems, while environmental regulations for doing so are becoming stricter, thus inflating production costs. These scenarios lead to a paradigm shift: using unconventional materials and employing recycling techniques for existing pavements. The use of industrial waste in different processes must be focused on sustainable development and the protection of the environment. The steelmaking process produces different types of waste, including blast oxygen furnace and electric arc furnace slag, and blast furnace dust. This research analyzes the technical convenience of using blast oxygen furnace and electric arc furnace slag as coarse aggregate and studies the alternative of using blast furnace dust as fine aggregate for the manufacture of hot asphalt mixes for pavements. The results of this study evidence that steel waste has characteristics that can be favorable in its use as granular material for the manufacture of asphalt mixtures for pavements. This allows to deduce that it is technically possible to benefit from using this waste and thus contribute to sustainable development and the protection of the environment.