Grantee Research Project Results
Low Embodied Carbon Alternative For Stabilization and Full Depth Reclamation Utilizing Waste Glass
EPA Contract Number: 68HERC25C0026Title: Low Embodied Carbon Alternative For Stabilization and Full Depth Reclamation Utilizing Waste Glass
Investigators: Kumpon, Jacob
Small Business: KLAW Industries LLC
EPA Contact: Richards, April
Phase: I
Project Period: December 16, 2024 through June 15, 2025
Project Amount: $100,000
RFA: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) - Phase I (2025) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR)
Description:
Creating the Foundation for Modern Soil Stabilization.
Fly ash from coal power plants is one of the United States' most polluted materials, and today, it is being dumped right in our backyard. Full-depth reclamation and soil stabilization have been a significant advancement in the paving industry in the past 8 years, allowing for in-place material recycling, drastic reductions in the virgin aggregate, and resilient roadways. However, the innovative process relies on mixing industrial waste and high-carbon cement with our roads. This project will develop a market-ready alternative to the legacy fly ash and cement used in the industry today with the waste we send to our landfills. This new material will replace high-embodied carbon materials in stabilization projects and solve contractors' needs by being 10% lower cost, 94% less carbon-intensive, and 14% stronger than fly ash used today.
Technical Feasibility & Commercial Applications.
KLAW Industries has made a substantial material advancement, allowing the 7.5 million tons of waste glass we landfill every year in the United States to alter the trajectory of the paving industry. The project will deploy prototype material in a pilot project to demonstrate that this technology can build longer-lasting, lower-cost, and stronger roadways for rural communities across the United States. Our target market is stabilization project managers who are forced to use legacy materials of the past with constant cost, quality, and supply problems.
Market Size & Performance Benefits & Environmental Benefits.
A low-cost alternative to fly ash and cement allows stabilization contractors to provide their customers with an all-around better product while drastically reducing the embodied carbon of the built environment without needing to change their process. The total addressable market for bringing recycled glass to the full-depth reclamation industry is $40 billion in the U.S. As sources of fly ash continue to disappear and cement prices rise, this market will grow at a rate of 6.6% over the next ten years.
Utilizing recycled glass in full-depth reclamation projects will leverage one of the country's most persistent and stable waste streams to deploy a sustainable alternative for agencies, municipalities, and private companies completing infrastructure projects. Recycled glass changes the industry by increasing compressive strength by 14%, lowering excess hauling by 62%, and reducing material costs by 10%. Deploying this new material will prevent 7.03 million tons of embodied carbon from entering U.S. infrastructure annually
Progress and Final Reports:
The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.