An investigation of foaming additives and usage rates in the production of ultra-light foam glass

Abstract

This study investigated the production potential of foam glass having an apparent density of < 200 kgm−3 from waste glass powders ground to a grain size < 150 µm. In the study, glass powders obtained from waste window glass and waste soda bottles were used as fillers, and sodium silicate, silicon carbide, manganese oxide, calcium carbonate, activated carbon and glycerin were used as foaming agents. The samples were sintered in an ash oven at 875 °C for 25 min and then cooled at 10 °C/min. The volumes of the foam glass samples obtained were determined, their masses were measured with precision scales, and then, their densities were calculated. The pore diameters and morphology of the samples were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The compressive strengths of the foam glass samples were tested, and their thermal conductivity coefficients were measured using the heat flow meter method. As a result, the chemical structure of the waste glass, the optimum amount of foaming additives and their proportions were determined for the production of ultra-light foam glass.