Red sand could be used for road construction

Curtin University researchers has discovered a new use for red sand, previously considered an unusable waste product from the extraction of alumina from bauxite. Aluminium producer Alcoa’s three WA refineries produce 30,000 tonnes of red mud and 18,000 tonnes of residue sand - which combine to make up red sand - every day.

Curtin’s Sustainable Engineering Group (SEG) found that red sand could be used as a viable and more environmentally friendly alternative to virgin sand and limestone in road construction. This would reduce the need for quarries to extract those materials.

The benefits of using red sand for roads (based on use of 600,000 tonnes per year over a 35-year period) include:

• avoiding approximately 66,200 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions;
• conservation of approximately 407 ha of land, with corresponding preservation of vegetation and biodiversity;
• reduced costs of $18 million to the construction industry and potentially many more millions, depending on the fate of the federal carbon tax.

WA’s Department of Main Roads has conducted trials of red sand on a section of Greenlands Road, which connects the Forrest Highway to the South Western Highway at Pinjarra. It is hoped red sand will be commercially available early next year.

As well as its suitability for road construction, red sand can be used as top dressing in a variety of circumstances, including golf courses, parks, playgrounds and sports fields.