The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Wednesday said it is exploring the use of phosphor-gypsum waste material, a by-product of fertiliser production, in the construction of national highways.
The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), the Department of Fertilisers and the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilsers will conduct field trials on projects for use of phosphor-gypsum in the construction of the national highways to achieve a circular economy in the use of gypsum, said a statement.
An Indian fertiliser company has constructed a road using phosphor-gypsum, which was evaluated by the Central Road Research Institute (CRRI). Based on their report, the Indian Road Congress (IRC) has accredited neutralised phosphor-gypsum waste material for road construction for three years.
NHAI is also encouraging the use of waste plastic in road construction, which has already been tested successfully.
Similarly, NHAI has used fly ash, a fine residue of coal combustion in thermal power plants, for the construction of highways and flyover embankments.
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