Glass
Glass is a common waste for both households and industries due to its many benefits as a product container and construction material. Most users benefit from its transparency and reliability.
Businesses who produce bottles in particular, use the material for its more inert qualities, as drinking from a glass to most people tastes better and is a more enjoyable experience other product storers like cans. Glass can become an overwhelming and potentially hazardous waste when shattered into shards, the material is infinitely recyclable.
Solutions
Waste Initiatives provides a range of solutions that crush or pulverise glass waste. Entry level glass crushers are a suitable choice of machinery for businesses such as restaurants and hotel groups, who need to compact large amounts of glass that they are unable to store in bins as full-sized bottles.
Pulverising systems on the other-hand are used by enterprises which produce much more glass waste. Mid level pulverising systems provide a complete solution and process up to 1.5 cubic meters of glass per hour, converting the waste into a finely ground aggregate and sand mix. This new material is profitable for businesses to offload, as it can be repurposed into new products, constructions materials, or other for uses, like art.
Related Equipment
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Glass crushers
turn glass into aggregate or sand
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Infeed conveyors & picking lines
sort waste lines
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Trommels
separation of fines & non-glass particles in sorting facilities
How recycling glass can make a difference
How can glass recycling and our Andela systems make a difference? Andela has been working with Glass Half Full for several years. Recently they upgraded their glass pulveriser from the GP-05 to the GP-2HD as they expand their footprint into a larger facility.
Glass Half Full, a Louisiana-based startup founded by Franziska Trautmann and her partner, is transforming local glass recycling. Their mission is to keep glass waste out of landfills and repurpose it for environmental restoration, particularly rebuilding Louisiana’s eroding coastline. With strong community support and successful crowdfunding, the team secured equipment and a warehouse to launch their operations.
Each week, they process roughly a garbage truckload of glass, accepting free drop-offs and offering paid pickups. The Andela pulveriser is the backbone of their system, capable of crushing up to 1 tonne of glass per hour into usable sand and gravel. This machine also separates out contaminants, streamlining the recycling process.
The crushed glass is repurposed in various ways: sand for coastal restoration, gravel for landscaping, and fine powders or coloured grains for use by artists and homeowners. Even residual materials like metals, plastics, and cardboard are diverted into other recycling or composting channels.
In just two years, Glass Half Full has diverted over 4 million beer bottles from landfill. Their grassroots approach, powered by community volunteers and the versatile Andela GP-05, is proving how small-scale innovation can drive meaningful environmental impact. Read about their initial GP-05 in their initial operation.
In the TED TALK Franziska explains her journey, motivation and impact behind glass recycling.
Recorded at TEDNext 2024 and created in collaboration with Ignite Talks.
Equipment For Glass
Wastepac Glass Crusher
Efficiently crush bulky glass bottles and reduce bin collections with a 5:1 compaction ratio. Ideal for space-saving waste management.
Andela AGC1
Portable glass crusher with 3T/hr capacity, abrasion-resistant build, and conveyor feed. Ideal for medium to high-volume cullet processing and product destruction.
Andela GP-MINI
The Andela GP-Mini is a compact glass pulveriser delivering 500kg/hr throughput. Ideal for remote sites needing safe, eco-friendly glass waste reduction with minimal footprint.
Andela GPT-1HD
The GPT-1HD pulveriser processes 3–5T/hr of MRF glass, maximising recovery with surge hopper, feed conveyor, and trommel separation of sand and aggregate.
Andela GP-1HD
Built tough for high-volume processing, the GP-1HD pulveriser handles up to 10T/hr of MRF glass, ideal for recycling centres needing robust, continuous performance.
Frequently asked questions
Yes! Recycled glass sand is mostly silica, like natural sand. The main difference is that calcium and sodium oxides are added to the silica during glass processing; however, these compounds are found in nature and are not a concern for the environment.
Absolutely! Mix glass sand with soil or compost for an excellent growing medium. The percentage of glass sand you use will depend on the plants you are considering.
Sand is our planet’s most exploited resource after water. Solving this crisis requires all types of ideas, and glass sand is one part of that solution.
Recycling glass into bottles requires capital and energy. Most communities do not have a glass manufacturer nearby. So, instead of allowing glass to crowd landfills, diverting it and crushing it into sand and aggregate/cullet is the next best solution.
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