Bricks made with cigarette butts can save energy and help solve a global littering problem. Using cigarette butts as a material in fired clay bricks could not only put the waste to use, it could help reduce the energy needed to fire the bricks.
Trillions of cigarettes are produced every year worldwide, resulting in millions of toxic waste being dumped into the environment in the form of cigarette butts. As butts have poor biodegradability, it can take many years for them to break down, while heavy metals such as arsenic, chromium, nickel and cadmium trapped in the filters leach into soil and waterways.
Fired-clay bricks incorporated with cigarette butts were also lighter with better insulation properties -- meaning reduced household heating and cooling costs. Importantly, bricks incorporated with 1 per cent cigarette butts maintained properties very similar to those of normal bricks.
During firing, heavy metals and other pollutants in cigarette butts are trapped and immobilized in the bricks, reducing problems caused by leaching.
"Incorporating butts into bricks can effectively solve a global litter problem as recycled cigarette butts can be placed in bricks without any fear of leaching or contamination. They are also cheaper to produce in terms of energy requirements, and as more butts are incorporated, the energy cost decreases further" said Mohajerani, a senior lecturer in RMIT's School of Engineering.
Source: http://mashable.com/2016/05/25/cigarette-butts-bricks/#S4m5ie8V6gq3