Desenvolvimento e caracterização de espumas de vidro produzidas a partir de resíduos vítreos

Abstract

The increasing generation of glass waste, especially from non-returnable packaging, poses a significant environmental challenge due to the limited availability of effective reuse routes. This study proposes the development and characterization of glass foams produced from recycled amber bottles, aiming at their application as functional materials in environmental systems. The collected glass was manually ground, sieved, and selected within the particle size ranges of 75–297 μm and 297–425 μm. Foam formulation included calcium carbonate as the foaming agent and boric acid as the stabilizer, both at 15% in relation to glass mass, dispersed in a sodium alginate gel medium. Spheres were shaped by dripping the suspension into a calcium chloride solution, followed by drying and sintering at 860 °C. The samples were characterized in terms of apparent density, water absorption, porosity, pore size distribution, and chemical composition using LIBS (Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy). The results revealed a well-formed tridimensional porous structure, with a heterogeneous distribution of pores and effective incorporation of the additives. Spectral characterization also enabled the identification of the material's origin, highlighting the technical and environmental feasibility of reusing glass waste in the development of new functional materials.