The Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP) commissioned an integrated programme to explore the feasibility of recycling paper mill waste residues as a raw material for the manufacture of novel construction products. In developing new products based on alternative materials there are a number of significant barriers to be overcome. This project attempted to address the main issues in seeking to commercialise and transfer a new technology. The principle issues addressed were performance, manufacturing and markets. The aim of the programme was to demonstrate the technical and commercial feasibility of recycling a waste material to manufacture products that conformed to appropriate European standards. The key steps in the development programme were designed to provide prospective manufacturers with robust evidence of the technical capability of this waste resource and provide information on the likely markets. In terms of a potential raw material the sludge has a number of attractive attributes, it is easily available (a total of 1 million tonnes of papermill sludge are generated on an annual basis in the UK) and is of a relatively consistent composition. The product development work focused on the chemical and physical characterisation of paper mill waste residues, process design, pilot scale manufacture of product prototypes and product testing and optimisation. Finally the success of the products was measured via a consultation exercise, which involved the organisation of a series of dissemination events inviting a wide audience from a variety of industry sectors to comment on the prototype products. In total six new products were developed during the project. However, the development of only three primary products (softboard, hybrid MDF and cement bonded boards) is discussed in this paper.
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