UK road trial of graphene enhanced asphalt

RNS Number : 7670S

Directa Plus PLC

08 November 2019

 

8 November 2019

Directa Plus plc

("Directa Plus" or the "Company")

UK road trial of graphene enhanced asphalt

Directa Plus (AIM: DCTA), a producer and supplier of graphene-based products for use in consumer and industrial markets, and its partner Iterchimica, an Italian based world leader in products that enhance asphalt performance, are pleased to announce the commencement of a trial of re-surfacing of a section of a UK road with the G+ upgraded asphalt super modifier containing Directa Plus G+ graphene.

The trial in Curbridge, Oxfordshire will see the laying of an asphalt concrete with a proprietary innovative graphene-enhanced super modifier and will involve the refurbishment of the two upper layers of a 750m long section of road.  The trial is being conducted with the co-operation of Oxfordshire County Council and the prime contractor is Skanska AB, a multinational construction company.

The trial, comparing asphalt concrete with the super modifier to a traditional asphalt surfacing, will assess; service life; resistance to the passage of vehicles; resistance to deformation; and permanent plastic deformation. This follows on from the Company's previously announced successful trials in Italy.

The graphene-enhanced super modifier is the result of a three-year research program with a patent filed in 2017. New technologies such as the super modifier has the potential to vastly improve the quality of road surfaces throughout Europe and the wider world.

Once laid, asphalt concrete with super modifier can be 100 per cent recycled, which can reduce the extraction of new materials from quarries and first-use bitumen.

Commenting, Giulio Cesareo, Founder and CEO of Directa Plus, said:

"This trial is an important step for Directa Plus and Iterchemica, in partnership, in proving the business and use case for the next generation of graphene enhanced road surfaces.

"This technology will allow governments to supply better quality roads for drivers and other road users, at better value for money, and in a more environmentally sustainable way.

"Working with leading companies such as Iterchemica to bring the benefits of G+ graphene enhanced products and materials to market is a key part of Directa Plus' strategy across all our key industrial verticals."

ENDS

For further information please visit http://www.directa-plus.com/ or contact:

Directa Plus plc	[phone]
Giulio Cesareo, CEO
Marco Ferrari, CFO
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)	[phone]
Rick Thompson, Philip Davies, Will Goode (Corporate Finance)
Caspar Shand Kydd (Sales)
N+1 Singer (Joint Broker)	[phone]
Mark Taylor, Lauren Kettle, Mia Gardner
Tavistock (Financial PR and IR)	[phone]
Simon Hudson, Edward Lee, Barnaby Hayward

This announcement has been released by Giulio Cesareo, Chief Executive, on behalf of the Company.

About Directa Plus

Our focus is principally on the two sectors in which we have strong commercial advantage through developed and launched products and a technological lead: environmental (based on our Grafysorber® product) and textiles (based on our G+ products).  In addition, we will continue to pursue opportunities in elastomers and composites (including tyres and asphalt), also using our G+ products.  All our products are hypoallergenic, non-toxic and sustainably produced.

About Iterchimica

Iterchimica, an Italian based world leader in products that enhance both asphalt pavements performance and the laying of road surfaces in order to increase safety, environmental sustainability, and efficiency.

http://www.iterchimica.it/en/

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