Cement composite plates reinforced with nonwoven fabrics from technical textile waste fibres: Mechanical and environmental assessment

In this work, we present the development and characterisation of new cement-based composite panels reinforced with fibres recovered from wastes of protective technical clothing. The developed panels present a flexural strength (∼15 MPa) and fracture toughness (∼3.5 kJ/m2) that are suitable for their application on ventilated façades. The environmental impact of these panels was evaluated through the life-cycle assessment (LCA) from a cradle-to-gate approach and was compared with similar engineered materials and commercial materials used for ventilated façades (fibre cement facing tiles, ceramic tiles, and natural stone plates). Two functional units were assessed: the panel necessary to cover 1 m2 of façade, and the panel necessary to cover 1 m2 of façade providing a maximum bending stress of 17 or 24 MPa. For 17 MPa, the new composite developed has presented similar environmental performance to fibre cement facing tiles and significantly better than the traditional ceramic tiles and natural stone plates.