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MODERN RUSSIAN 
India advances green roads with crop-waste-based bio-bitumen
New technology developed by Indian scientists converts agricultural residue into sustainable material for infrastructure projects
India has introduced an innovative approach to sustainable infrastructure with the development of bio-bitumen derived from crop waste. The technology, created by scientists at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), offers a renewable alternative to conventional petroleum-based materials used in road construction, as reported by IANS, a partner of TV BRICS.
According to reports, the process enables agricultural residues such as rice straw to be transformed into a binding agent through pyrolysis, which involves heating biomass in the absence of oxygen, producing an eco-friendly substance suitable for road-building applications.
Early trials have shown promising results. Experts confirmed growing industry interest and ongoing efforts to scale up the technology through wider adoption.
Union Minister Jitendra Singh highlighted the importance of the breakthrough, noting its role in strengthening resource efficiency and supporting national infrastructure development.
The initiative also provides a practical use for agricultural by-products, contributing to improved environmental management and more efficient resource utilisation. In addition to road construction, the innovation is expected to enable further applications, including pest control solutions and advanced carbon-based materials, supporting India’s sustainable economic growth.
In BRICS, its partners and other countries, governments and research institutions are implementing innovative projects to convert waste into valuable resources, produce clean energy, and advance sustainable development.
Russian scientists at National University of Science and Technology MISIS (NUST MISIS) and the Research Institute of Advanced Materials and Technologies (RIAMT) have developed a method to produce carbon materials from cotton waste in just a few minutes, compared with the usual one and a half hours, reports the university's website. The process uses microwave treatment in a travelling-wave waveguide, ensuring rapid and uniform heating, and transforms textile by-products into porous carbon suitable for supercapacitor electrodes.
The resulting materials combine fine and larger pores, enabling faster ion movement and high efficiency under heavy loads. Tests show over 95 per cent capacity retention after 20,000 charge-discharge cycles. The approach offers a faster, energy-efficient, and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional activated carbon production, with potential applications in electronics, electric transport, and energy storage systems.
Meanwhile, in Nigeria, Lagos State has launched a facility that converts organic market waste into biogas and biofertiliser, according to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), a partner of TV BRICS. The system collects organic waste and, through an oxygen-free biological process, produces clean energy for cooking and electricity while generating nutrient-rich fertiliser for agricultural use.
In the same vein, in Argentina, Elangeni Gilbert, a researcher at the Institute for the Development of Technology aimed at the Chemical Industry (INTEC) under the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), leads a project that transforms industrial plastic waste into high-value molecules in just minutes. According to Ahora San Juan, a partner of TV BRICS, the method recovers the chemical constituents of plastics and, using biomass-derived depolymerising agents, converts them into biodegradable "plastics of the future" suitable for various applications. The approach offers a technically and environmentally viable alternative to conventional recycling, with potential benefits for sustainable material use, waste reduction, and resource efficiency.
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