Adnkronos (Adnkronos) – Innovation in the road infrastructure sector and the environmental industry's contribution to the development of sustainable solutions. These are the central themes of the conference "Sustainability and Materials for the Roads of the Future," promoted by Officina dell'Ambiente (ODA), a company of the EcoEridania Group, as part of Asphaltica 2026, the international trade fair for technologies and solutions for road paving, safety, services, and infrastructure.
At Pavilion 37 of the Bologna Fair, the discussion was inspired by the 'Asphalt Test Field' project, developed by Officina dell'Ambiente together with its technical partners and coordinated by Anas. The aim is to deepen field testing, verify material performance, and recover resources in the construction of more sustainable road infrastructure.
The project involved, in March 2026, the construction of an experimental section of pavement on the SS 131 “Carlo Felice”, in Paulilatino (OR), with a bituminous conglomerate containing 12% of SandMatrix 0-4 material deriving from the recovery and valorization of bottom ash from waste-to-energy plants, used as a partial replacement for natural sands.
The field test allowed for a direct comparison of the performance of the traditional mix with that of the mix containing SandMatrix 0-4, which demonstrated comparable results and was in line with the requirements of the relevant AAS specifications. The experience thus provided concrete evidence on the potential use of industrial aggregates in road pavements.
Another significant element is represented by the new Anas Special Procurement Specifications, revision 10 of July 2026, which includes materials such as Matrix and similar, marking an important technical recognition and opening up new possibilities for their possible use in road pavements.
Building on this experience, the conference extended its discussion to the role of research, laboratories, and the environmental industry in validating materials and solutions for road infrastructure, highlighting the importance of collaboration between businesses, universities, laboratories, and infrastructure managers to transform experimentation into concrete applications.
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