Rubble from war-torn buildings repurposed as concrete aggregate

Led by Dr Theodore Hanein and Professor John Provis from Sheffield University’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, the study has proven for the first time that recycled concrete aggregate can be used as a sustainable alternative to the raw materials in concrete.

The research shows that the rubble could replace up to 50 per cent of the raw materials used in concrete without significantly affecting its performance. The team’s research is detailed in the Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering.

In a statement, Dr Theodore Hanein, UKRI Future Leaders Fellow at Sheffield University, said: “Sadly, the ongoing civil war in Syria has left more than 130,000 buildings destroyed, and now after the devastating earthquake even more buildings have been damaged or destroyed in northern parts of the country.

“For the past four years we’ve been working with Syrian academics to find ways of reusing the vast amount of rubble that has been left behind by the war and we have now found a way to recycle it that could help the country recover once it comes to the time of rebuilding.”