A graduate of the University Center for Exact Sciences and Engineering, of the University of Guadalajara, created plates or sheets of novel material made of recycled plastic. The so-called "plastic wood" is used for the construction of houses with economic, ecological and useful life benefits, but also resists earthquakes.
“With an earthquake, rigid materials tend to break, even though the construction has good castles and structure. On the other hand, the plastic ones absorb telluric movements, as the material is flexible ”, clarified the materials science engineer, Ramón Martín Espinosa Solís, director of the Ecoplastic company that manufactures and markets the material.
For the creation of the plates, the waste plastic is classified according to its characteristics and type in high and low density polyethylene, as well as polypropylenes. Subsequently it is ground to obtain flakes and different mixtures are made according to the rigidity or flexibility that you want to achieve, as well as its applications.
The mixture is done by mechanical means, without using water. The material is then placed on carbon steel trays and baked at 220 degrees centigrade. For an average plate of 10 millimeters wide, it lasts one hour, and the time is increased to last an average of two hours, in the case of a plate of 38 millimeters.
The material reacts and plasticizes as if it were plasticine, without changing its solid state. It is then subjected to a cooling process and, at the same time, it is pressed to give it a solid, rigid consistency that is resistant to any impact.
For a conventional house, plates of 1.20 meters wide by 2.40 high, with thicknesses of 10 to 13 millimeters, are used, which are used for the walls. The material, as it covers less space than other conventional ones, is ideal for making better use of small spaces.
A house made of plastic wood does not have air conditioning, and the difference in temperature with the outside is around six degrees Celsius. “This is due to the insulating materials that cause slow heat transmission. In addition, the bioclimatic architectural design allows cross ventilation, which is why the heat that the material manages to transmit from the outside to the inside is eradicated ”, described engineer Espinosa Solís.
"This cabin will never have humidity, nor the need to maintain the plastic plate, which has a degradation period of more than 100 years, when a conventional construction has a useful life of 50 to 70 years."
A house made of plastic wood can cost up to 30 percent less than one made of conventional material. However, if this type of construction is equipped to capture solar energy, in order to reduce gas and electricity consumption, the price could drop an additional 10 percent, and if there is an agreement with an educational institution or university for the collection of plastic, the cost could decrease by as much as 50 percent.
Regarding the construction time, a house of 50 square meters can be completed in a period of four weeks, and one made with conventional materials in three or four months.
The economic, ecological and useful life benefits are not at odds with aesthetics. Plastic plates are materials that can be combined with others such as marble, wood and granite, creating spaces that are pleasing to the eye.
(With information from ID Agency)
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