Currently, the issue of glass recycling is gaining more and more popularity. Unfortunately, most glass products end up in landfills or even thrown away right on the street, where they adversely affect both human health and the environment. It does not decompose for many years, accumulates in huge quantities and threatens to completely litter our planet. Recycling glass properly and avoiding such problems can be done by recycling.

Benefits of recycling

Recycling and reuse of glass is necessary for the following reasons:

1. It doesn't decompose. A typical glass beverage bottle will take over 1000 years to decompose. Without recycling, our planet will turn into a large dump of glass;
2. Glass products break easily. Broken glass released into the environment can injure both animals and people;
3. Glass in the soil makes it difficult for plants to grow;
4. Reuse of glass recyclable materials saves natural resources, as well as electricity;
5. Financial benefit. By handing over glass to collection points for recycling, you receive a monetary reward;
6. Reduces the amount of harmful emissions. When using recyclable materials for the production of new products, less harmful substances are emitted.

Video on how glass bottles are made

What is glass

Glass is a solid transparent or colored material.

It is made from pure quartz sand, lime and soda. Various additives can be used to change the properties of the material, however, it is sand that is the main component.

Physical properties

Like any other material, glass has characteristic properties:

• Density;
• Fragility;
• Heat resistance.

Views

There are different types of glass, which differ from each other in appearance and properties:

• Crystal. It is obtained by adding lead to the composition;
• Quartz. It consists of pure sand, due to which it is highly durable. Capable of withstanding significant temperature fluctuations;
• Foam glass. Lightweight building material that can be used both for decoration and for masonry walls and floors;
• Glass wool. A voluminous airy material consisting of thin and very strong threads.

The speed of movement of the crack on the broken glass is 4828 km / h.

Scope of application

Glass is a fairly popular material for various types of human activity. Almost any application can be found for this material. The main area of ​​use is construction. More than half of it is used in construction.
The purpose can be very diverse:

• Wall covering;
• Glazing of windows;
• Erection of walls from hollow bricks;
• Thermal insulation.

Another popular area of ​​glass application is glass vessels for various purposes and glassware.

It should be noted that glass is an irreplaceable material in the chemical industry, since it is resistant to most reagents.

Possessing many useful qualities, it is ideal for recycling without losing its properties.

Glass as a type of recyclable material

Recycled glass types

According to GOST, there are the following types of cullet:

• BL - Colorless sheet;
• PSL - Semi-white sheet;
• PST - Semi-white container;
• CT - Brown container;
• KL - Brown sheet;
• ЗС - Green cullet.

In addition, glass recycled products are conventionally divided into the following categories:

• Integral container. This includes any whole glass bottles or jars;
• Sorted fight. This group includes broken container, aquarium or window glass, sorted by color;
• Assorted waste. Mixed broken glass of different colors;
• Scrap of special glass. Includes broken optical or other specialized glass: broken lamps, cathode-ray tubes, etc.
• Erklez. Lumpy multi-colored glass, decorative insert in stained-glass windows, as well as stony and lumpy glass, which is used in interior design.

Through recycling, we willseeless similar waste in the city and in nature

Recycling glass is necessary, first of all, to protect our environment, to save natural resources, as well as for the production of new products and materials.

Glass containers

Glass containers usually mean various containers made of glass that are intended for storage:

• Drinks;
• Food products;
• Perfumery;
• Household chemicals;
• Medicines;
• Chemical substances.

Distinctive features of glass containers:

• The ability to give any shape;
• Long-term storage of products;
• Multiple use;
• Recyclable.

Cullet

The cullet is broken glass items (bottles, window panes, jars, etc.). The most common sources of cullet are:

● glass containers;

● window glass;

● interior items (mirrors, lampshades);

● dishes.

Who accepts glass containers and cullet for processing

Usually these are special reception points, which are now located in most cities in Russia. Such points are mainly organized by individual entrepreneurs, since it is profitable for them to sell this type of recyclable material to factories for the production of glass products. Also, the container and the battle are accepted by the enterprises themselves, engaged in the processing and production of glass products.

About 150,000 tons of glass waste is generated in Russia annually.

Only at the collection point can glass be properly disposed of

Where to look for a glass collection point

In order to find a collection point, you can use the search engine of our website:

To see the collection points in your city, click the "Select Recyclables and City" button located on the right and select your city. You will be able to familiarize yourself with prices, addresses and phone numbers, and on the basis of this, choose the acceptance that suits you best. It should be noted that you need to give preference to those points where the price is the highest, since it is possible that you will have to go there again, especially if you plan to do this with your additional income.

Do's and don'ts

Most often, the following types of secondary waste are handed over to the collection points:

• Beer and vodka bottles;
• Bottles for drinks, wine, champagne;
• Banks with a capacity of 0.5 l, 1 l, 1.5 l 3 l;
• Baby food jars;
• Old glassware.

And although almost all glass products can be recycled, some types of glass cannot be reused. These include:

• Mirrors;
• Triplex (multilayer);
• Products where reinforcing mesh, refractory raw materials are used;
• Tempered glass;
• Broken glass with foreign objects (stones, coal, iron, ceramics);

In addition, make sure that your recyclable materials are dry. Wet glass containers and cullet are also not accepted.

Rules for accepting glass containers and cullet

The main reasons to hand over glass

Citizens have other reasons, in addition to concern for the environment:

1. Financial benefit. You will make a profit for unnecessary glass at the reception point;
2. Lack of storage space. Waste jars and bottles can accumulate in the home in large quantities. If you are sure that such glass products will no longer be useful to you, it is wiser to hand them over for recycling;

How to prepare glass for delivery

Sorting must be done before taking it to the collection point. If you hand over both glass containers and cullet, separate them from each other. Divide glass bottles by color into brown, white and green. If there is dirt, rinse the glassware and then dry thoroughly.

It should be noted that there is a state standard for glass breakage, according to which this raw material is divided into two grades:

• I grade - clean waste without impurities, the size of which is 10 - 50 mm;
• Grade II - cullet of irregular size, in which an insignificant content of foreign organic impurities, clay and sand is allowed.

However, if foreign elements (metal, wood, etc.) are found in the cullet, it is better to remove them.

When the recyclable materials are sorted, do not contain debris and moisture, you can take them to the collection point, where employees can evaluate the glass and pay you money.

One-liter and 3-liter cans are very popular at the reception centers.

It should be noted that the receiver pays special attention to the neck of the glass container: the presence of even minor chips automatically directs the container to the second category. And this, in turn, leads to a decrease in the size of the profit.

Glass waste cost

Glass containers and cullet are bought by many companies for further use as secondary raw materials. Prices in our country for glass are low and vary depending on the city. So, for 1 bottle you can get from 10 kopecks to 2 rubles.

The price is formed from the following factors:

• Glass grade and type;
• Degree of cleaning from dirt;
• Lack of foreign inclusions;
• The degree of mixing of different types of glass by color;
• The presence of moisture.

Glass processing: stages and technologies

The recycling process may differ from site to site, but generally involves the following steps:

• Careful sorting by color and type;
• Cleaning from dirt and foreign elements;
• Drying;
• Grinding into small pieces or powder;
• Adding (if necessary) various fillers, additives, blowing agents;
• Loading prepared raw materials into special forms;
• Heating up in ovens and shaping.

Video on how recycled glass is ground

The quality of new products produced by glass recycling is not inferior to the quality of a product made from 100% fresh raw materials.

Other uses of glass waste

An alternative type of glass waste processing is the reinforcement of concrete. There are two types of concrete products where cullet is used:

• Glass concrete. This material is used in industrial production and is highly resistant to acid solutions;
• Glass-filled concrete. In this case, glass waste acts as a substitute for a more expensive material in the composition of concrete. Both partial and complete replacement of the main filler are allowed;
• Foam glass. The material is used both in the residential sector and in industrial production.

Bottles are crushed for further processing