The first CDW recycling era encompassed traditional crushing and screening technologies for use in low grade application as embankments and roads nevertheless in the future it is expected to grow the demand for high-grade secondary raw materials. In this sense VEEP project enables to provide new technological advancements covering the whole building life that can provide high quality secondary raw material suitable for new building products development. In particular the main exploitable innovation in VEEP relates to new cost-effective technological solutions/processes and novel cost-effective and “greener” materials/products that will trigger a number of impacts as:
• CO2 savings, energy savings, and higher resource efficiency. The VEEP (siliceous normal-weight) concrete formulation used in the load-bearing layers of the PCEs allows a reduction in CO2 emissions of 22.3% compared to conventional concrete formulation and concerning energy consumption, 29.4% less (primary) energy is consumed per m3 of concrete.
• Improving energy efficiency of the grinding/sorting processes, is recommended to reduce the environmental and economic impacts associated with the energy consumption.
• Creation of new value chains by expanding the size and attractiveness of C&DW recycling and reuse for energy efficient buildings construction and refurbishment, properly tackling non-technological barriers.
• Contribution to achieving the objectives of the European Innovation Partnership on Raw Materials, in particular to the relevant impacts shown in Action I.5 "Recycling of raw materials from products, buildings and infrastructure" of the Strategic Implementation Plan;
• Contribution with viable technologies, with high replication potential, to significantly change practices of the construction industry towards circular economy practices;
• Improvement of innovation capacity of the construction sector to stimulate new growth and jobs creation.
