The parking lot on the OEM’s Lexington campus in Kentucky is the first commercial use in the USA of TonerPave, a product which uses Lexmark toner powder to create asphalt.
More than 9,000 pounds of toner from recycled printer cartridges went into the resurfacing material, developed by Australian-based cartridge recyclers Close the Loop, The Lane Report reported. TonerPave was created by in collaboration with Downer EDI, who has been using the product to resurface roads in Sydney, Australia.
Close the Loop is now working on the next generation of TonerPave, which hopes to further advance its sustainability and performance through incorporating rubber from recycled tires.
John Gagel, Corporate Manager of Sustainability at Lexmark, said: “TonerPave is an efficient and effective manner in which to recycle toner. We’re now demonstrating that we have a solution that can be utilized in a sustainable manner. It’s part of the circular economy.”
Dean Vukovic, Director of Business Development at Close the Loop, commented: “We are able to provide a product that does not increase the raw material cost of laying asphalt pavement. This is the model we have successfully built in Australia and expect no different in the U.S. market.”