Novel use of waste glass powder: Production of geopolymeric tiles

Abstract In industry, as well as in cities, a large amount of solid waste is produced, some of which is partially recycled or is disposed of in its entirety in landfills, thereby generating negative environmental effects. Of this waste, industrial waste glass from numerous application sources is a major source of pollution because only an estimated 30% is reused globally. In the search for an alternative outcome for waste, various applications have arisen, some of which are related to constructions sector. This research study concerns the use of waste from glass bottles, fluorescent lamps and soda-lime window glass, used in its entirety as a raw material in the manufacture of tiles by applying the technique of alkaline activation to generate an alkaline cementitious material. The feasibility of using the waste for the development of this type of cementitious material is enabled by the high content of silica in the glassy state. NaOH was used as activator in a concentration range from 4 to 10 M. Manually produced tiles, exhibit good properties as compressive strength of 178 (kg/cm 2 ) and maximum load supported before rupture of 1006 (N). The use of these wastes contributes to environmental sustainability and generating more friendly building products.