CHAPTER 16: Waste Materials Cured and Modified by Irradiating and their Use in Concrete

In the present chapter we discuss the importance of using gamma radiation as a novel technology for structural and physicochemical modification of waste materials, including PET bottles, Tetra Pak packing containers and tire rubbers, and their use as reinforcements of concrete. As is known, it is not common to incorporate waste materials into concrete due to the incompatibility with the components of the concrete. Nevertheless, in the last decade many efforts by researchers and technicians have proven the capacity of waste and recycled materials when mixed with concrete, since for the construction industry, maintainability and sustainable improvement aims primarily to protect the environment.