Innovation and development of a new recycled glass material

It is demonstrated that randomly collected recycled bottle glass can be used by designers who wish to create architectural glass installations. Compatibility tests using a digital photoelastic stress measurement confirmed the stability of the fused material. The strength of the glass was then tested mechanically with a four point loading method and compared favourably with commercial ceramic tiles. Induced devitrification through particular kiln cycles produced an even stronger material. The variation in opacity due to devitrification had an aesthetic appeal and generated further opportunities for development of new applications. The incorporation of primary coloured frit together with variation of glass fragment sizes facilitated an exploration of colours and texture in an architectural context. Combining these colours with various fragment sizes of the crushed glass and a variety of top kiln temperatures, resulted in an immense variation of aesthetic features.