92% less CO₂ emissions with woven geotextile in airport infrastructure
Location of work/project:
Company:
Summary:
Ostend, Belgium
Beaulieu Technical Textiles
The use of a woven geotextile in renovating Ostend-Bruges Airport's runway replaced traditional gravel methods, significantly reducing CO2 emissions. Compared to gravel, the geotextile required only three trucks for transport, resulting in a 92% reduction in CO2 emissions. Its polypropylene (PP) composition further enhances environmental benefits over polyester (PET) granulate. The geotextile acts as a separation layer between fractions, providing rigidity through its E-modulus property, and offering strong tensile strength with good soil density. The geotextile thus combines environmental advantages with functional superiority, showcasing its role in sustainable infrastructure solutions.
In the modern infrastructure sector, sustainability has become intrinsic. The use of advanced materials such as the geotextile Terralys LF57/57 plays a crucial role in achieving sustainable solutions. In the renovation of the 160,000 m² runway of the airport of Ostend-Bruges, Terralys LF 57/57 was chosen over the traditional method of applying a 10 cm thick layer of gravel. The woven geotextile was supplied by Texion Geokunststoffen and manufactured by Beaulieu Technical Textiles.
The choice for geotextiles resulted in a significant reduction of CO2 emissions. A 10 cm gravel layer on an area of 160,000 m² equaled 24,000 tons of material and resulted in 960 trucks for transport, whereas the transport of the Terralys geotextile only required three trucks. This led to a saving of 1,335 tons of CO2, a 92% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to a gravel layer.
The choice of polypropylene (PP) as a raw material for Terralys geotextiles is another factor contributing to the environmental benefits. Compared to polyester (PET) granulate, PP granulate results in lower CO2 emissions.
Terralys not only offers environmental benefits, but also functional benefits. The product is used as a separation layer between layers with different fractions, and its strength combined with limited deformation provides rigidity to the structure, a crucial property named as E-modulus. This unique property makes an active and constructive contribution to the stability of the structure. In addition, Terralys offers remarkable tensile strength with good soil density, which results in a reduced thickness of the foundation package.