Every year the United States reclaims approximately 100 million tons of asphalt pavement. After reclamation, paving experts reuse approximately 95% of that asphalt in America’s roads and highways. This saves American taxpayers a lot of money in installation costs. Beyond the cost savings, there are several other benefits to asphalt recycling.

Benefits

Environmental

Recycling asphalt reduces the amount of new oil needed in the construction process. It also saves on waste, because nobody is sending the recycled asphalt to any landfill.

Economic

As previously mentioned, taxpayers save money when asphalt is reused. Contractors also save money by reducing their overhead costs. Asphalt has the potential for pavers to reuse it multiple times. This makes asphalt a very cost effective option.

Process

The process of recycling asphalt begins with milling, which is a process that removes the top layer of asphalt without damaging the sublayers. Once demolition experts mill the asphalt, they take it to a processing plant. The plant screens and sizes the pieces and uses it to make new pavement. Many times the renewed asphalt is stronger and better quality than fresh asphalt, making recycling asphalt a no-brainer.

Pulverization

Another recycling option is called Pulverization. This is a process that allows asphalt to be reused without it ever leaving the job site. It grinds the top surface of asphalt, the incorporates it into the sublayer, creating a new, stronger sublayer for the fresh asphalt. It is becoming more and more popular as it saves time, money, and is environmentally friendly.

Beyond Pavement

Professionals recycle more than just asphalt pavement. If you have asphalt shingles, those also have potential. The aggregate in the shingles makes them invaluable for a variety of purposes. In particular, pavers are using recycled asphalt shingles on rural roads. They cover the roads in gravel that is mixed with the recycled shingles. This minimizes the gravel loss on the roads and reduces the amount of dust that is created.

Concrete Too

It is also pretty easy to recycle concrete. Demolition personnel simply break it, remove it and re-crush it. They have to remove any extraneous materials in this process. Then, pavers reuse recycled concrete  as though it were brand new concrete.