Thanks to the latest technologies, the recycled glass does not completely degrade its properties and maintains identical characteristics and requirements to the one produced from virgin glass.
With ancient origins and characterized by a high aesthetic value, the glass is still a widely used and consumed inert material. It is entirely made up of natural substances: the basic mixture, in fact, is mainly composed of silica (quarry sand) and a variable percentage of glass scrap (recovered glass), to which stabilizers, fluxes and chemical additives are added, according to the characteristics the product to obtain. It is mainly characterized by transparency, compactness and low thermal and electrical conductivity. In addition, this material is impermeable to liquids and gases, unalterable over time and resistant to chemicals. Extremely ductile, the glass is processed using different technologies ranging from industrial to a more artisanal production. As a result, it finds applications in several sectors, from building industry and furnishing to cutting-edge technology fields, such as aerospace, telecommunications and minimally invasive surgery sectors.
Thanks to the latest technologies, the recycled glass does not completely degrade its properties and maintains identical characteristics and requirements to the one produced from virgin glass; it can also be processed through the same processes and can be used for the same applications. It is possible to obtain recycled glass by re-using both industrial production waste (fragments and splinters) and solid urban waste coming from the separate waste collection (mainly packaging). Instead, the glass waste coming from hospitals is subject to special checks and limitations of use and must anyway undergo specific sterilization processes.
In order to optimize the recycling process, the separate waste collection should be carried out by colours. In fact, while from glasses of different colours it is possible to obtain again coloured glass (green or brown glass is obtained from the mixed scrap), in order to produce a colourless glass (the finest used by the food industry), clear glass is needed. The recycling process thus begins with the collection and selection phase. This is followed by sorting and purification (both mechanical and manual), to avoid the contamination with other materials as much as possible, crushing and screening operations. At this point the “furnaceready glass scrap” can be used alone or combined and mixed with virgin materials (in a minimum percentage of 10%) to become a molten glass mass and create new products. An important feature is the degree of purity of the recycled glass that helps to establish its usage: the more the amount of impurities is high, the more the material is suitable for the construction sector; on the contrary, for the production of packaging and artefacts, the parameters of purity must comply with very strict constraints.
Environmental benefits
First of all, glass recycling involves a reduction in the consumption of the raw materials used: the recycling, in fact, reduces the demand for sand and silica, which is anyway a quarry product. In addition, just consider that 100 kg of glass scrap allow to obtain 100 kg of new product, whereas it takes 120 kg of raw materials to obtain 100 kg of new product. Secondly, since the production process of virgin glass is considered highly energy consuming, the recycled glass significantly contributes to reducing the energy used in the production processes and the resulting CO2 emissions released into the atmosphere. In fact, each 10% of glass scrap together with the vitrifiable mixture allows a reduction of energy consumption by 2-3%. Finally, there is the advantage of avoiding an accumulation of bulky material in landfills which, moreover, even at very high waste-toenergy temperatures, is not possible to completely melt and may cause damages to the mechanical parts of the system. Using a kilogram of recycled glass instead of virgin material, it is possible to obtain a reduction of climate-altering emissions equal to 0.51 kgCO2 eq and a reduction of energy consumption equal to 2.45 kWh.
Applications
In recent years, at an international level several companies have developed design products and architectural applications made of recycled glass, introducing significant changes in the market in terms of design, quality and environmental performances. The recycled glass can be used for the production of containers for foods, drinks, drugs and cosmetics: these products must be characterized by an attractive design and refined and particular shapes. It can also be used for the production of objects of art, furniture, design and fashion accessories, while maintaining unchanged the bright colours and brilliance, typical characteristics of virgin materials but that can be easily found in recycled materials. Finally, it is an excellent building material: in the form of powder or splinters, it is
Thanks to the latest technologies, the recycled glass does not completely degrade its properties and maintains identical characteristics and requirements to the one produced from virgin glass.With ancient origins and characterized by a high aesthetic value, the glass is still a widely used and consumed inert material. It is entirely made up of natural substances: the basic mixture, in fact, is mainly composed of silica (quarry sand) and a variable percentage of glass scrap (recovered glass), to which stabilizers, fluxes and chemical additives are added, according to the characteristics the product to obtain. It is mainly characterized by transparency, compactness and low thermal and electrical conductivity. In addition, this material is impermeable to liquids and gases, unalterable over time and resistant to chemicals. Extremely ductile, the glass is processed using different technologies ranging from industrial to a more artisanal production. As a result, it finds applications in several sectors, from building industry and furnishing to cutting-edge technology fields, such as aerospace, telecommunications and minimally invasive surgery sectors.Thanks to the latest technologies, the recycled glass does not completely degrade its properties and maintains identical characteristics and requirements to the one produced from virgin glass; it can also be processed through the same processes and can be used for the same applications. It is possible to obtain recycled glass by re-using both industrial production waste (fragments and splinters) and solid urban waste coming from the separate waste collection (mainly packaging). Instead, the glass waste coming from hospitals is subject to special checks and limitations of use and must anyway undergo specific sterilization processes.In order to optimize the recycling process, the separate waste collection should be carried out by colours. In fact, while from glasses of different colours it is possible to obtain again coloured glass (green or brown glass is obtained from the mixed scrap), in order to produce a colourless glass (the finest used by the food industry), clear glass is needed. The recycling process thus begins with the collection and selection phase. This is followed by sorting and purification (both mechanical and manual), to avoid the contamination with other materials as much as possible, crushing and screening operations. At this point the “furnaceready glass scrap” can be used alone or combined and mixed with virgin materials (in a minimum percentage of 10%) to become a molten glass mass and create new products. An important feature is the degree of purity of the recycled glass that helps to establish its usage: the more the amount of impurities is high, the more the material is suitable for the construction sector; on the contrary, for the production of packaging and artefacts, the parameters of purity must comply with very strict constraints.Environmental benefitsFirst of all, glass recycling involves a reduction in the consumption of the raw materials used: the recycling, in fact, reduces the demand for sand and silica, which is anyway a quarry product. In addition, just consider that 100 kg of glass scrap allow to obtain 100 kg of new product, whereas it takes 120 kg of raw materials to obtain 100 kg of new product. Secondly, since the production process of virgin glass is considered highly energy consuming, the recycled glass significantly contributes to reducing the energy used in the production processes and the resulting CO2 emissions released into the atmosphere. In fact, each 10% of glass scrap together with the vitrifiable mixture allows a reduction of energy consumption by 2-3%. Finally, there is the advantage of avoiding an accumulation of bulky material in landfills which, moreover, even at very high waste-toenergy temperatures, is not possible to completely melt and may cause damages to the mechanical parts of the system. Using a kilogram of recycled glass instead of virgin material, it is possible to obtain a reduction of climate-altering emissions equal to 0.51 kgCO2 eq and a reduction of energy consumption equal to 2.45 kWh.ApplicationsIn recent years, at an international level several companies have developed design products and architectural applications made of recycled glass, introducing significant changes in the market in terms of design, quality and environmental performances. The recycled glass can be used for the production of containers for foods, drinks, drugs and cosmetics: these products must be characterized by an attractive design and refined and particular shapes. It can also be used for the production of objects of art, furniture, design and fashion accessories, while maintaining unchanged the bright colours and brilliance, typical characteristics of virgin materials but that can be easily found in recycled materials. Finally, it is an excellent building material: in the form of powder or splinters, it is
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..
