Multicriteria analysis of glass waste application

Abstract

Increasing amounts of glass waste present serious challenges in waste management to avoid environmental problems that might be created if it was to be deposited in landfills. Theoretically, glass waste is fully recyclable, but, if contaminated, containing impurities, broken or mixed colour, it makes the re-melting process impractical. A great practice of using secondary recycling material was reached by the construction industry involving glass waste in concrete mixtures as fine aggregates – reuse of waste glass in concrete production not only preserves natural resources, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, saves energy, furthermore, it may improve concrete sustainability and enhance the properties of concrete when used at the optimum quantity. In this study the container glass waste evaluation was performed, as well as experimental research of mechanical properties of four types of concrete mixtures containing glass waste as fine aggregate. The best alternative of replacement of sand by glass waste scenario in concrete production was determined, employing the multicriteria decision-making method TOPSIS.