Directa Plus asphalt technology laid at Imola Circuit

Graphene nanoplatelet specialist Directa Plus announced on Friday that ‘GiPave’, an asphalt solution incorporating graphene and recycled plastics, was being installed at the Imola Circuit ahead of the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in May.

The AIM-traded firm said GiPave was the result of a collaborative effort between Iterchimica, G.Eco of the A2A Group, the University of Milano-Bicocca, and Directa Plus, following a multi-year research programme.

Leveraging graphene supplied by Directa Plus and incorporating hard-to-recycle plastics, including items like toys, fruit crates, and old CD cases, Directa Plus described GiPave as a novel approach to asphalt technology, boasting full recyclability, contributing to waste reduction and minimising the demand for new materials.

At Imola, GiPave was applied to resurface the access road paving to the paddocks, an area subject to heavy vehicle and foot traffic during race events.

The adoption of GiPave would reportedly yield substantial savings in energy and raw material consumption over the pavement's lifespan.

Projections were for savings of over 78,000 kilograms of bitumen, 1.623 million kilograms of aggregates - equivalent to the weight of 955 cars - and about 115 truck trips for material transportation.

Additionally, over 1,182,125 kilowatt-hours of energy - equivalent to the monthly needs of 5,254 families - and 74,000 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions - equivalent to the absorption capacity of about 3,000 adult trees in a year - were expected to be conserved.

The initiative had also repurposed 3,700 kilograms of selected hard recycled plastics, further contributing to sustainability efforts.

“I am thrilled to see that the Imola Circuit is now the first in the world to implement an innovative, green asphalt solution incorporating our Graphene Plus, thanks to our partnership with Iterchimica,” said chief executive officer Giulio Cesareo.

“This project underlines the limitless applications of Gipave-from bridges and motorways to airports and now race tracks.”

Cesareo said the “outstanding properties” of Graphene Plus were “paving the way” for more sustainable infrastructure globally.

“Iterchimica and Directa Plus are pushing the boundaries of technology and sustainability and we are delighted to be collaborating with the group with which we with share the same goal to build a greener future.”

At 1400 BST, shares in Directa Plus were up 7.69% at 21p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.