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Why CarbIP?

CarbIP, which stands for ‘Circular Aerogel reusable building insulation products’, is a collaboration between CRH and Aerobel. The project aims to replace current non-circular and non-environmentally friendly insulation material with new, innovative, sustainably produced and circular ‘designed for disassembly’ construction products comprising composite aerogel-based insulation materials.

Our goal

The main goal of CarbIP is to make high-performance Aerogel-based composite insulation materials. Aerogel is combined with recycled loose mineral and natural fibres, as well as recycled EPS, to obtain circular and sustainably produced insulation materials.

Product

[Waste] streams

The following input (waste) streams will be incorporated in the aerogel production process and upgraded to high-value insulation materials:

  • Recycled cellulose fibres (e.g. from recycled newspaper or other industrial waste streams)
  • Recycled mineral fibres (e.g. glass wool and stone wool fibres): mineral fibres within construction and demolition waste are considered largely unrecyclable. These streams can be integrated directly within the aerogel composite insulation material
  • Silica-rich waste streams (e.g. glass waste, glass fiber waste, rice husk (ash)) are used to produce the silica aerogel itself
  • Expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam is used extensively throughout Europe as an insulation material. These recycled EPS streams can be used as input material to produce high thermal performance aerogel-incorporated EPS composite beads

Impact

At the end of the project, the following effects are expected:

  • A new demo plant will be operational for the continuous production of new, composite aerogel-based insulation materials
  • These new, composite aerogel-based insulation materials will be launched in the market to replace PU/PIR plate-shaped materials, to provide an alternative for these materials with the same thermal performance, but significantly improved environmental properties
  • The composite aerogel-based insulation materials will be applied in the new, designed for disassembly, 100% circular IDW (insulated double wall) products of CRH SCB
  • The LCA and EPD data of the new insulation materials and IDW (Insulated Double Wall) products will be documented in BIM databases and material passports will be made available, allowing for knowledge sharing with regard to the new technical and environmental properties of the products

A demo installation for the large scale production of the new, aerogel-based insulation materials will be implemented in Bilzen (Belgium) (an area of 1300 m² is available for this demo plant).

Demo installation

Project Implementors

The project team responsible for implementing, coordinating, reviewing and exchanging information regarding the project activities are:

CRH Structural Concrete Belgium NV

CRH Structural Concrete Belgium NV (CRH SCB) is the main coordinator of this project. It is an established Belgian enterprise specialized in the production of prefabricated structural concrete elements and façade elements and will be involved in the demonstration and prototype development of the new IDW products containing the aerogel-based insulation materials produced by Aerobel.

Website: www.crh.com

Aerobel

Aerobel is a Belgian start-up specialized in aerogel technology and will be involved in all activities linked to the aerogel-based insulation materials:

Website: www.aerobel.tech

CRH Nederland BV

CRH Nederland BV (CRH) is responsible for the coordination of the dissemination, communication, exploitation, sustainability and replication activities.

Website: www.crh.com

Updates

Contact

CRH – Structural Concrete Belgium
Address: Marnixdreef 5, 2500 Lier
Belgium
Email: info@carbip.eu
Website: www.crh.com

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