The assessment and treatment of waste from glass fibre production for use as a filler in composites

Abstract

Waste glass from fibreglass production is waste that is generated at various stages of production. In nature, it is a combination of glass fibres, fine dust, but also larger glass grains, for example also from leakages during production. This material is or may be contaminated by impregnation, lubricants or some impurities that prevent its recovery during production. The main objective of this study is to assess the suitability of glass fibre waste and to optimise the pre-treatment of the raw material for use in the composite. This paper describes the determination of chemical composition, mineralogical composition by X-ray diffraction analysis, determination of bulk density, water absorption and specific surface area. The results obtained are compared with the primary raw material - glass fibre. The results showed that the waste from glass fibre production is primarily composed of silica, calcium, alumina and boron. Minor components include magnesium oxide, sodium oxide, fluorine, iron oxide, strontium oxide, potassium oxide, titanium dioxide, sulphur dioxide and chromium oxide. The specific surface area of treated glass fibre waste correlates with the specific surface area of cement, which is a prerequisite for the use of this waste as a partial substitute for cement in the production of building materials.