Technologies for using secondary raw materials offered by the French will enable post-war Ukraine to save on construction: building buildings from recycled construction waste is 2-3 times cheaper than purchasing material, logistics, and waste disposal. More details — with the vice president of the company, Bart Gruyer, and the director of the Neo-Eco representative office in Ukraine, Kyryll Chernyshuk.
Back in the 80s, in the forests of the Holosiiv district of Kyiv, near the "Pyrogovo" park and museum, a landfill was created in a clay quarry for the storage of large-sized construction waste. The quarry quickly filled up, and the dump began to grow, turning into a mountain several tens of meters high. Environmentalists and activists are still holding actions, writing petitions and appeals for the purpose of closing the landfill. However, in the absence of an alternative, all construction waste of the capital continues to be brought here, polluting green areas.
The problem of collection, sorting and disposal of garbage in Ukraine is one of the sore points. About 15–17 million tons are added to landfills each year, and only a tenth of that is recycled. Most of the specially designated territories have exhausted their limits, and spontaneous landfills began to appear, growing in forest strips, near rivers, at the foot of mountains. Environmental control remains conditional, residents' awareness is low, and plans to improve the situation at the state level are, unfortunately, only a theory so far.
Every year in Ukraine, landfills for waste are replenished by approximately 15–17 million tons
During the construction of new buildings or the renovation of an old architectural fund, the developer or builder is obliged to ensure the removal of construction waste, but there are no strict obligations regarding their disposal in the regulations, and the decision remains on the conscience of the company that builds. So, from each construction site we get a plus meter to the suburban "mountain".
Thus, during the construction of a 100-apartment building, an average of 15–20 tons of solid waste is generated, the demolition of one five-story building will leave an average of 3000 cubic meters of construction waste. Today, the amount of war ruins is added to the figure of projected construction waste. According to preliminary estimates, about 2 million tons of construction waste was generated in Bucha alone, and potentially 800 million tons of waste in Ukraine as a whole.
The city of Gostomel, war ruins. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
What are you?
Experts are sure that the way out should not be found in increasing the number and area of landfills, but in waste processing. In Europe, recycled materials have acquired the status of a full-fledged product of international trade. So, for example, in Latvia, at the country's largest landfill, a greenhouse was built for vegetables, which are heated by heat from a landfill power plant. In Germany, an amusement park was opened on the site of one of the old garbage landfills, and nearby housing estates are heated with energy from waste incineration. In Japan, waste ash is used to create the basis for artificial islands: Odaiba and Tennozu were created from industrial waste.
Recycling is not only environmentally sound, but also financially beneficial. For example, during the extraction of natural crushed stone, 8 times more energy is spent than when obtaining it from old crushed concrete. At the same time, the cost of concrete obtained from secondary rubble is 25% lower than concrete based on natural. In addition, unlike other waste, for example, electrical equipment, the processing of construction waste is simpler and cheaper technically - sometimes quite simple installations for separation and crushing.
Depending on the state, the type of waste and the location of the landfill, the removal of 1 ton of construction waste costs from 4 to 150 euros. Therefore, it is more profitable for developers to spend resources on processing and disposal of garbage. So, in the Netherlands, about 90%, in Belgium - 87%, in Denmark - 81%, in Great Britain - 45%, in Finland - 43%, in Austria - 41% of the material is reused. The European Demolition Association, which includes 79 European companies, was created to share experience in the direction of processing building materials and to popularize this idea.
A park on the site of a former landfill, Hiriya, Tel Aviv (Israel). Image source: econews.bei.org.ua
The Reincarnation of Garbage, or the Neo-Eco Closed Cycle Economy
The French company Neo-Eco is a leading expert in the field of innovative processes of reuse of building materials. For more than 17 years, her team has been implementing large-scale projects around the world that demonstrate the effectiveness of using secondary raw materials.
Bart Gruyer: "50 percent of buildings in Europe have been reworked to become new architecture"
In 2020, the explosion of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in the port of Beirut created thousands of tons of rubble mixed with grain. And Neo-Eco is taking on the sorting and recycling of waste, participating in a giant reconstruction project. One of the recent cases is the construction of a village for the 2024 Olympic Games in the Paris region. Another object with the use of secondary concrete is the construction of a two-hundred-kilometer metro line in the French capital.
"The metro of the city center of Paris is an example of our largest project, which we are currently working on," says project director and vice president of the company Bart Gruyaert, "you can imagine the process of forming a huge underground tunnel, it is incredibly complex engineering work." . According to Gruyer, the use of secondary building materials is a very developed direction not only in France, but also in other European countries. "50 percent of buildings in Europe have been converted into new buildings," Barth says.
Project director and vice president of the Neo-Eco company Bart Gruyaert, Kyrylo Chernyshuk, director of the Neo-Eco representative office in Ukraine (the general contractor is the Ukrainian company "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"). Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
Kyrylo Chernyshuk: "We predict a huge shortage of building materials on the Ukrainian market, which will provoke an increase in prices and a shortage in the European market, and the price tag for materials will rise rapidly due to the huge demand."
Kyrylo Chernyshuk, director of the Neo-Eco representative office in Ukraine (the general contractor is the Ukrainian company ENERGO-SYLA GROUP). Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
This method of construction and the experience of the French company can be very valuable for Ukraine in the conditions of post-war recovery. "We predict a huge shortage of building materials on the Ukrainian market, which will provoke an increase in prices and a shortage of the European market," explains Kyrylo Chernyshuk, director of the Neo-Eco representative office in Ukraine (the general contractor is the Ukrainian company "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"), "and the price list for materials will grow rapidly due to the huge demand."
In addition, Neo-Eco experts point out that in the case of using foreign raw materials that are extracted, it is necessary to take into account not only their cost, but also additional costs for logistics and waste disposal. According to Bart Gruyer, in this situation it is more expedient for Ukrainians to use local raw materials, but this entails another problem - the efficiency of production. "Large-scale reconstruction of Ukraine will take more than 10 years," Barth believes, "and local cement factories will need to produce many times more products to catch up with the market." And this is unrealistic for Ukraine."
According to Gruyer, building structures from recycled concrete is 2-3 times cheaper than building from new materials. Therefore, the most logical and effective way is to recycle construction waste. "And, although many believe that it is still too early to talk about reconstruction," says Gruyer, "in April, we started to analyze and think about how to correctly apply this approach to the Ukrainian market."
Reconstruction of Gostomel. About the project
A destroyed residential building in Gostomel. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
As we know, Gostomel is one of the most affected settlements in the Kyiv region. About 40% of the village was destroyed and damaged here. 546 buildings were completely destroyed, 4,5 houses were damaged to varying degrees. Therefore, the French company chose this location for the first reconstruction project using recycled concrete in Ukraine. On July 7, 2022, the Neo-Eco delegation with director Christoph Deboff paid an official visit to the Kyiv region.
The delegation was accompanied by the deputy head of Kyiv regional city administration, Mykola Boyko. On September 27, the head of the Kyiv Regional Military Administration Oleksiy Kuleba together with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of France Catherine Colonna and representatives of the Neo-Eco company signed a memorandum on the restoration of the military town in Gostomel.
Bart Gruyer: "The task of post-war reconstruction of Ukraine is enormous, and our goal is not only to implement one project, but also to develop a methodology for its further multiplication in other Ukrainian cities"
On July 7, 2022, the Neo-Eco delegation with director Christoph Deboff paid an official visit to the Kyiv region. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
On July 7, 2022, the Neo-Eco delegation with director Christoph Deboff paid an official visit to the Kyiv region. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
The project involves the reconstruction of six residential buildings for 310 apartments, a school for 1000 students and a kindergarten. Neo-Eco plans to dismantle damaged structures and recycle about 75-98% of construction waste into new material.
"Reconstruction in Gostomel is our first pilot project in Ukraine," says Bart, "it will provide an opportunity to test and verify in practice both the performance of the material itself, obtained as a result of processing local construction waste, and to adjust all production and organizational processes. Of course, the task of post-war reconstruction of Ukraine is huge, and our goal is not only to implement one project, but also to work out the methodology for its further multiplication in other Ukrainian cities: Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Mariupol...".
The French government is financing the initial stage of the project, but the full amount of implementation will be about 45 million euros.
The signing of the memorandum between the French company Neo-Eco and KOVA took place at the end of September
Production, material, composition, properties
Speaking of production, it should be noted that Neo-Eco does not produce uniform structural elements such as beams, foundation blocks or ceilings. The final product of the company is concrete. It does not build large stationary production facilities for its production. Neo-Eco's arsenal includes mobile factory lines that are set up right at the dismantling site. "This equipment is already available for Ukraine, and already in July we started its presentation and testing to make sure that it is suitable for simple reproduction without serious investments," says the vice president of the company.
The first, pre-project stage (3rd — 4th quarter of 2022) is devoted to the study of local raw materials and the creation of a material recipe. "In order to get the perfect concrete formula, many tests and examinations are required. This is complex engineering work, mechanical and technological analysis, scientific research. Our laboratories pay great attention to the selection of the material, the study of its composition, the search for the ideal formula of secondary concrete, - says Bart, - in this matter, we have more than 17 years of experience, which is successfully applied in large French projects. Over the years of professional practice, we processed about 10 million tons of concrete, and during all this time there were no problems with its operation."
Regarding the quality of concrete, such as thermal conductivity, strength, durability, Neo-Eco takes into account regulatory requirements accepted both for Ukraine and the European Union. "We make sure that the characteristics of the concrete we produce are higher than the standard, new concrete," explains Gruyer.
The earliest buildings made of concrete, dating from about 6500 BC, were discovered in the territory of modern Jordan and Syria. But it was not yet the usual cement concrete for us. Lime, gypsum, clay and their various combinations played the role of a binder in it. Modern binder for concrete was invented in the new era. Its first variety — romance — was patented in 1796 by the Englishman James Parker. This binder was obtained by burning a mixture of limestone and clay, followed by grinding it into flour. But the firing temperature was only about 800–900°C, which is not enough for sintering the rock.
Cement clinker, formed at a temperature of about 1450 ° C, was invented by the French engineer Louis Joseph Vic in 1817. And 11 years later, he demonstrated the quality of the obtained material by building the world's first suspension bridge made of cement
There is no universal "recipe" for concrete. The ratio of ingredients can change in one direction or another and is selected for a specific task. That is why the factory production of the mixture is a rather complicated process. In the production of concrete from secondary raw materials, there is no clear and proven recipe. Concrete characteristics will vary depending on the ratio of proportions of binder, water, coarse and fine aggregates.
"The composition of recycled concrete produced by us is not constant - it depends on the type of raw materials used, collected in different locations. Accordingly, the mechanical and chemical properties will also differ, explains Barth, and naturally we cannot use the same type of concrete for different construction purposes. These are always different compositions. We usually produce 3 types of concrete: structural, insulating-structural and lightweight. Structural concrete is the most difficult to manufacture. We must be very careful here, as its exploitation is always associated with risk. Getting the other two types is easier.”
The use of such material is extremely diverse: interiors, facades, constructions, infrastructure, landscaping. However, Neo-Eco does not focus on the decorative tasks of concrete. The company creates material for the subsequent manufacture of walls, ceilings, foundations, road slabs, structures of various engineering structures.
Scheme of collection of samples of secondary raw materials using equipment in the port reconstruction project in Beirut. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
In 2020, the explosion of hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in the port of Beirut created thousands of tons of rubble mixed with grain. And Neo-Eco is taking on the sorting and recycling of waste, participating in a giant reconstruction project. Photo provided by "ENERGO-SYLA GROUP"
How harmful is such production to the environment? The specificity of construction slag processing is related to toxicity. Some construction waste contains harmful impurities or may have an increased radiation background, which means that each batch of raw materials must be carefully checked. "For example, during Soviet times, most of the concrete produced could not be used for the construction of residential buildings," says Barth, "we conduct an examination on toxicity. If during the inspection we see that it is a material dangerous to human health, we will not use it and continue the search for the right composition."
Bart Gruyer: "The biggest challenge in the process of working with recycled concrete is discipline on the construction site"
How difficult is this material to work with? Does it require special equipment or construction worker skills? In answering this question, Barthes sharpens the focus on discipline. "Equipment, the technical side of the issue is not the biggest difficulty in working with our product," says the vice president of the company, "in Ukraine there are conditions for the production and use of secondary concrete. But the most important challenge in this process is the discipline of workers on the construction site. The application of this method requires maximum accuracy, quality of execution, attentiveness, and professionalism. Technical supervision is very important. And now we are looking for Ukrainian companies that will meet the highest level for this work."
About prospects and cooperation with Ukraine
Neo-Eco researches and implements solutions that optimize and activate urban metabolism and industrial territorial ecology
Neo-Eco's mission is a world without waste. The principle of the company's work is based on the economy of a closed cycle. In other words, experts consider any territory as an ecosystem, where the balance of substances can be achieved by transforming some material and energy resources into others. The company researches and implements solutions that optimize and activate urban metabolism and industrial territorial ecology.
According to Barth, there are not many companies in the world that use this methodology. Working with the concept of circular economy, Neo-Eco creates many different directions. These are research, university cooperation, creation of an eco-product, consultations, territorial and development projects. Neo-Eco cooperates with such companies as Regions de France, Interreg Europe, Les Agences de l'eau. In France, Neo-Eco has already created 17 startups related to environmental protection strategies. This is the cleaning of rivers, the increase of green areas, the elimination of harmful plant species, and the assessment of the materials of the underwater world.
"We plan to create the same initiatives in Ukraine," says Bart Gruyer, "in the future we are going to produce a number of construction materials in cooperation with Ukrainian companies. And many are already interested in joining us. Currently, we are not talking about the specific number of jobs in Ukraine. At this moment, we are not creating jobs, but we are creating conditions for engineering, design bureaus and restoration workshops to be involved in joint projects. We hope that in the future we will have about 50 specialists in Ukraine who will help us carry out expertise in various locations and create new materials within the framework of the closed cycle economy."
Read also
Crushed stone, wood and straw will be used to restore housing and infrastructure in Gostomel
They plan to create a museum in Borodyanka and place Banksy's works there
