Utilization of Broken Glass into Ceramics

I. Introduction

A. Background of the Study

Glass is an amorphous(non-crystalline) solid material. Glasses are typically brittle

and optically transparent. The most familiar type of glass used for centuries in

windows and drinking vessel, is soda-lime glass, composed of about 75%

silica(SiO2) plus sodium oxide(Na2O), calcium oxide(CaO), and several minor

additives. (Wikipedia.org)

Glass and ceramics share many properties with both crystalline and non-

crystalline materials. The microstructure of ceramics frequently contains amorphous

and crystalline phases. Glass and ceramics are both madeof sand (different types).

The silica content of glass can be used as main ingredient in ceramics in terms of its

characteristics and sand structure.

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and

mineral particles. The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local
rock

sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland
continental

settings and non-tropical coastal settings is silica( SiO2), usually in the form of quartz.
 Glass is used for many reasons, most of them for building. Glass does not harm

the environment in any way alone because it does not give off any pollutants, and can

be recycled. But if people leave glass out, it can harm animals as well as humans, if

not dealt with carefully.

To recycle broken glasses to ceramics can reduce waste in the environment and

prevent harm to animals and humans as well. Thus, this study is a good help to nature and

the ceramic industry to earn profit and create a product to develop their business.

B. Statement of the Problem

Main Problem:

 The use of Silica (SiO2) as a main ingredient for ceramics making.

Sub-Problems:

 The acceptability of ceramics made from broken glasses? Acceptability

in terms of cost, usability, utility.

 Is the brittleness and refractory property of the experimental ceramics

and commercial ceramics same?

C. Objectives of the Study

The purpose of this study is to develop ceramics from broken glasses with the

same quality of the commercial ceramics and evaluate the characteristics of the

developed ceramics to the commercial ceramic in terms brittleness and refractory.

 D. Hypothesis of the Study

1. Quartz-sand or silica can be used as a main ingredient in making

ceramics.

2. The brittleness and refractory of the developed product will be the

same with the commercial ceramics.

E. Significance of the Study

This study will make the people realize that broken glasses still has a purpose

and could be recycled into ceramics. It could also give benefit to the ceramics

industry to develop ceramics from broken glasses and earn good profit. And the

damage caused by broken glasses to passers-by and wheeled vehicles would be

less.

F. Definition of terms
Brittleness - A material is brittle if, when subjected to stress, it breaks without

significant deformation (strain). Brittle materials absorb relatively

little energy prior to

fracture, even those of highstrength. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brittle)

Silica - Silica is most commonly found in nature as sand or quartz. Silica is

used primarily in the production of glass for windows, drinking glasses, beverage bottles,

and many other uses. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon_dioxide)

Refractory -A refractory material is one that retains its strength at high temperatures.

Chapter II
 Review of Related Literature

Ceramics is one of the most ancient industries on the planet. Once humans

discovered that clay could be dug up and formed into objects by first mixing with water

and then firing, the industry was born. As early as 24,000 BC, animal and human

figurines were made from clay and other materials, then fired in kilns partially dug into

the ground.

Almost 10,000 years later, as settled communities were established, tiles were

manufactured in Mesopotamia and India. The first use of functional pottery vessels for

storing water and food is thought to be around 9000 or 10,000 BC. Clay bricks were also

made around the same time.

Glass was believed to be discovered in Egypt around 8000 BC, when overheating

of kilns produced a colored glaze on the pottery. Experts estimate that it was not until

1500 BC that glass was produced independently of ceramics and fashioned into separate

items.

One of the few processes for pottery is jiggering or jollying which we will use in

making our ceramic product. Jiggering is the operation of bringing a shaped tool into

contact with the plastic clay of a piece under construction, the piece itself being set on a

rotating plaster mould on the wheel. The jigger tool shapes one face while the mould
shapes the other. Jiggering is used only in the production of flat wares, such as plates, but

a similar operation, jolleying, is used in the production of hollow-wares such as cups.

Related studies shows the “Processing and mechanical properties of porous silica-

bonded silicon carbide ceramics” in which a simple processing route for manufacturing

highly porous, silica-bonded SiC ceramics with spherical pores has been developed. The

strategy adopted for making porous silica-bonded SiC ceramics entails the following

steps: (i) fabricating a formed body through a combination of SiC and polymer

microbeads (employed as sacrificial templates) and (ii) sintering the formed body in air.

SiC particles are bonded to each other by oxidation-derived SiO2 glass. By controlling the

microbead content and the sintering temperature, it was possible to adjust the porosity

such that it ranged from 19 to 77%. The flexural and compressive strengths of the porous

silica-bonded SiC ceramics with ≈40% porosity were ≈65 MPa and ≈200 MPa,

respectively. The superior strengths were attributed to the homogeneous distribution of

small (≤30 μm), spherical pores with dense struts in the porous silica-bonded SiC

ceramics. (METALS AND MATERIALS International, Vol. 11, No. 5 , 2005)