Construction and Demolition Waste Recycling

Table of Content:

• Construction demolition recycling
• C&D recycling
• Construction and demolition waste recycling process
• C&D recycling companies
• C&D recycling news

Construction and demolition waste (C&D waste) primarily consist of debris that is collected during construction, renovation and demolition of roads, bridges, and buildings, for example, materials such as:

• Concrete
• Wood
• Masonry
• Gypsum
• Asphalt
• Shingles
• Metals
• Plastics
• Glass

C&D Waste, mainly heavy bulk materials, contains a mixture of mineral and non-mineral materials, that can be easily recovered, reused and recycled.

After concrete, wood waste is the second largest component of C&D debris. It contributes approximately 25% of the recyclable building-related construction and demolition waste total.

There are a lot of opportunities and challenges to recycling of construction and demolition waste into usable end products.

Everyone in the construction and demolition industry can contribute by reducing waste, using materials in a better way, and collecting waste for recycling.

C&D recycling

Construction and demolition waste form one of the largest waste streams. Growing environmental awareness and increasing landfill costs make recycling this waste a steady business opportunity.

Construction and demolition waste recycling process

The general purpose of C&D waste recycling is to process the input into valuable materials such as wood, RDF, paper, and ferrous and non-ferrous metals and to minimize the waste fraction that is sent to landfills.

Technology for the separation and recovery of construction and demolition waste is well established, readily accessible and in general inexpensive.

There are 2 groups of C&D recycling systems available, stationary and portable.

C&D recycling systems generally consist of:

• Cranes for presorting
• Feeders
• Size reduction equipment
  • Primary shredders
  • Secondary shredders
• Screening systems
  • Trommel Screens
  • Disc screens
  • Anti-wrapping screens
• Manual sorting conveyors
• Air drum separators
• Windsifters
• Magnetic separators
• Sorting robots

C&D recycling companies

C&D recycling companies produce valuable materials such as wood chips, aggregates, and metals.

For C&D recycling companies, concrete recycling is becoming an increasingly popular way to utilize aggregate left behind when structures or roadways are demolished.

The most common type of C&D wood generated is dimensional lumber, but there is also plywood, treated wood, and manufactured wood such as composite panels that can come into a C&D recycling company.

With a well-designed recovery process, ferrous and non-ferrous metals can be sorted out from construction and demolition waste.

C&D recycling news

It is challenging to find a source that covers all aspects of the construction and demolition waste recycling industry.

C&D recycling news covers all recoverable construction and demolition (C&D) materials that are generated globally.

These materials include aggregates such as concrete, asphalt, asphalt shingles, gypsum wallboard, wood and metals.

Having access to news on breakthrough technologies in construction and demolition recycling is crucial for any recycling industry professional.