Replacement of natural sand with sand obtained from the recycling of crushed household glass

Abstract

According to Eurostat in 2018, Romania occupies the penultimate place in waste recycling. Packaging waste, generated in the European Union, was 174 kg per capita, but these quantities varied between Croatia - 67.8 kg per capita and Germany - 227.5 kg per capita. In the first place are waste paper and cardboard - 41%, plastic - 19%, glass - 18%, wood - 16% and metal - 6%, in the European Union 2018, these types being the most common household waste. Of the types of packaging waste, glass with 18.7%, is the greatest danger to the environment, being a waste that is not biodegradable, obtained by melting a mixture of quartz sand, limestone and soda ash. Glass packaging waste is 100% recyclable, theoretically, if the recycling and sorting process is followed, removing impurities (paper, sand, metals, etc.), non-compliance with the process will make the smelting process impractical. By recycling one ton of glass, we save 660 kg of sand, water for four people a day and avoid emitting 315 kg of carbon emissions from the greenhouse. Glass packaging waste is recycled with various professional equipment, which is used to obtain glass granules of different sizes, from 0.1 mm to 10 mm, the edges of the granules are rounded and have the appearance of fine sand. The present study presents the use of sand obtained from recycled and crushed household glass, in constructions, filters for domestic water, thermal insulation. The sand obtained from the recycling of household glass has a great advantage, it can be used cold and hot, temperatures weighing 1000C °, substantially reducing production costs, higher resistance by up to 30% and processing time.