Putting Plasticrete on the Blogger

 creating a robust  functional  material from reclaimed materials.

Plastic film and bags

Plastic film, which provides 39 percent of all plastic packaging, is a thin-gauge packaging used as a bag or wrap. Examples include plastic grocery sacks, trash bags, dry cleaning garment bags and plastic or stretch wrap. Plastic film is less than 10 mils thick, averaging 0.7 mils to 1.5 mils. A mil is 0.00l inch.

Most plastic trash bags are less than one mil thick.

Almost 40% of plastic produced is film 

Recycling plastic film is difficult because the manufacturing process uses diverse resins and colors. Most bags, sacks and shrink wrap are made from low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear LDPE or high-density polyethylene (HDPE). Polypropylene and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) also are used.

Additionally, many films blend or co-extrude two or more resins. Individual product characteristics may create remanufacturing problems. For instance, stretch wrap requires a "tackifier" so that it can cling, yet this quality is not desired in a bag.

Because plastic film does not degrade, degradable plastics are a proposed substitute. However, "degradable" bags will degrade slowly, if at all, in a modern landfill. As a result, a Florida requirement that plastic bags be degradable was repealed.

Oct 22, 2020

 

pics and renders of past work

Been a minute

Let me drop some old b 's

For those crypticly challenged, trying to follow along from home,

We are pivoting to plastic

Seeking to create structures from film scrap, ( mainly LDPE stretch film and single use bags ) by fusing and laminating said materials with hot aggregate material ( presently sand) to create robust components.

multiply negatives, what to do with plastic pollution

Does the lotus unfold on its own 

Or is intervention a necessity?

I came here to develop a technique to create useful, functional sculptures from ubiquitous plastic waste .

It's a long shot, not my first ( see: build eco-arts center Trenton nj, sustainable low-cost modular shelter systems, and of course the reinvention of the egg )

 

Perhaps I bite off more than I can chew. But grand problems may require grand solutions.  

 

My hypothesis is that most of the plastic waste that is thermo plastic as opposed to thermo setting. Which means that it will soften fuse and melt under heat. ( thermosetting plastic is more like a two part epoxy,  and can't be remelted).

So, with a bit of heat <275°C and pressure we can form laminated sheets of plastic hdpe,ldpe,pete,  PVC and a few others which comprise the bulk of ocean plastic as well as " recycled " plastic.

Instead of sorting these different polymers and worrying about contamination,  clean them a bit, and then heat, press and form them into thick continuous sheets. 

These forms will be anywhere from 20-100cm thick, the shape of which closely resembles a hull of a ship.

Instead of being linear,  this hull arcs around to form a torus (donut).

There is a drainage pipe running through the circumference (nts). 

It is back filled with soil ,silt and organic matter which acts as a growing medium. 

Inside the torus, is suspended three more floating mats of soil, semi submerged in a fresh water situation,  these areas can grow rice and other water loving plants.

Although it has agricultural, aquacultural and seasteading applications,  my main objective is to provide wildlife habitat. 

Although,  that may not pay the bills.

a dome is constructed over the inside.

Siem Reaper

Siem Reaper

Yeah, we stoned off a new mix, 

I have fallen into a haze ,

Yet  loving the trip.

Slack line, its a personal thing. Mastery, or the other side 

Seems so easily parodied.

In fact, Jerry is my handle here.

Does this work?

can i just insert ?

or is #metoo coming out?

Preview didn't show

on to the next thought.


wheeeeeeee

It's a beautiful ride,

certain realities bubble ,
bubble brings me to the ring that will surround and create a floating landmass

details:

If there was only a few designs




usually the materials drive the design

at present, I am in an area that lacks basic municipal services and plastic waste accumulates, the majority  of which is raked into piles , and burned.

So, i gets to thinking, if we could collect and sort into general categories;  organic, plastic, trash etc.with a minimum amount of effort, ( lazy man here and labor is happy) through pressure and heat create different compositions ,
even co-mingled plastics will fuse into this slightly less dense than water material.
i want to take the negative attributes of this material, namely, long lasting , malleable and ubiquitous .
             create structure.




That's the mf trifecta neighbor


this material can be extruded in a continuous  feed scenario.  I am sounding like a wackadoodle now

But anyway now there is a ring

provides a container

from this rim hangs the land mass

on the surface, bioconstruction of lattice dome

next steps
build a working scale model.





the profile is tbd

so many different scenarios tumble in

lets get as simple as possible

dragons tail












works in progress, the Publish tab stares back at me, what if.

Field and Stream of Kamponh Khleang

The quiet  fields in dry season.

Mung bean, not for sprouts

Thailand grows that.

The harvest is looking good this year. 

No sounds of bees, bird or insect alight ?

Not sure how this may be affecting the waterways, 

But today is good.

Props to Mcgyver application

sunny beach homestay
another venue I didn't stay at, but warm kind hosts

ST 63 Homestay



half a week in Kampong Khleang

My Buddy Long Nith 

Many thanks for entertaining,educating and mopeding me around.

Boomer workaround

If anyone finds themselves in KK without a paddle.

This man will hooked me up with a personal tour 

Field & Stream explains how some of the many fish traps worked

pm me for instructions.