2022 – 2023

This project will explore the potential of biochar for use as a climate-responsible, high-performance, pavement material.
According to Transport Emissions: Driving down car pollution in cities, transport contributes 17% of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions in Western Australia (WA). While vehicle emissions are an obvious source of GHG emissions, the construction of transport infrastructure also contributes. New pavement materials offer the potential not only to improve pavement performance but to contribute to achieving WA’s aspirational target of net zero emissions by 2050, through reuse, carbon storage and reduced emissions.

Biochar is the product of pyrolysis, which is the process of heating biomass to a relative high temperature (500 °C, for example) without oxygen. It is a lightweight black solid that locks carbon in a chemically stable form and can endure in soil for thousands of years. It has a long history of being used to increase soil fertility and agricultural productivity but there has been a growing interest in its role in carbon capture and storage because of its stability.

Furthermore, recent literature suggests that biochar can improve asphalt’s performance against the effects of aging, deformation, and high temperature. To harness the carbon sequestration potentials, this research will investigate:

1. the application of biochar as a filler material in asphalt pavements; and
2. the combination of biochar and limestone dust to reduce or even replace the anti-stripping agent – hydrated lime (the production of which generates a large amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere).

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The State Government’s Climate Policy (2020) sets out the strategic objectives for Western Australia to reach net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 and recognises the importance of significant action in the decade to 2030 to reduce emissions. As well, State Government agencies need to develop strategies to reduce GHG emissions by 80% on 2020 levels by 2030. The Public Transport Authority has taken responsibility for developing strategies to transition all government funded bus services to zero emissions in the next two decades. The transport sector generates nearly 15 million tonnes per annum of GHG emissions, and this has increased by 45% since 2005. The bus services funded by the State Government through the Public Transport Authority (Transperth, regional cities and towns, school bus services) require extensive fleets of buses and these typically involve a 15-20 year fleet replacement cycle. A Strategy to transition these bus services to zero emissions vehicles is needed to support decisions that will enable the transition to commence by the mid-late 2020s.

The objectives of this research project are to assess the feasibility of battery-electric buses for regional school bus services in Western Australia; identify and, where needed, propose solutions for electricity network capacity constraints; and identify the technical support services required for zero emissions buses and related infrastructure.

Find more information on iMOVE website: