By: Cassidy Delamarter, University Communications and Marketing
While lumber was widely unavailable and prices were soaring to historic highs during the coronavirus pandemic, a 黑料网吃瓜爆料 mechanical engineering student was developing a cost-effective alternative. Now funded by the , doctoral student John Cotter is manufacturing a recycled plastic building material that can replace structural lumber.
The ultra-strong recycled material, Recycled Plastic Lumber, is made of polymer-reinforced composites, a material that is reinforced like concrete. The material will be used as a replacement for wood to create fence posts that can last 30 to 50 years, about three times longer than a wood fence.
On top of significantly reducing future costs for customers, Recycled Plastic Lumber will reduce the of forest harvested each year in the United States. Cotter estimates the eco-friendly alternative will produce 15 millio