Sustainable Polyurethane Plasterboard for Construction

The introduction of polyurethane waste from the production of cars into gypsum plasterboards in its matrix is studied. This new plasterboard is compared to commercial gypsum plasterboard; therefore, the doses and the uses of both materials are the same. The prefabricated material is entirely characterized under the Standard EN 520:2005+A1 by the following tests: bulk density, maximum breaking load under flexion stress, total water absorption and surface hardness. The results indicate that the use of polyurethane waste makes the plasterboard lighter as the density of the polyurethane is lower than the gypsum one. The water absorption increased when the amount of residue increased. The lower density leads to a higher porosity, what permits a higher absorption of water and much better thermal isolation. It also reduces its mechanical performance while preventing the board from breaking since only small cracks appear. Besides, the elastic properties of the polyurethane make the surface hardness decrease. With respect to mechanical properties, plasterboard is susceptible to the mechanical impact damage. Although the flexural strength of the plaster specimens decrease as the amount of the waste increase, it remains within the minimum reference value required by standard. Non-combustibility test is determinate on the basis of experimental data obtained according to Standard EN 13501-1. Turning waste into a resource is one key to a circular economy, the employ of this polyurethane waste for the fabrication of plasterboards could contribute to maximize the reuse of this kind of waste.