New recycled sand for concrete using crushed glass from end-of-life and damaged solar panels is being trialled on a major infrastructure project in Melbourne.
The sustainable concrete blend has been specifically created for the North East Link project, according to Boral. Sourced from ElecSome, a solar panel upcycling plant, the glass was crushed and processed then blended with 50% natural sand.
The innovation was driven by Spark North East Link Design & Construct Joint Venture which engaged Boral to produce and trial the concrete, supported by development and testing by the University of Melbourne.
A variety of concrete mixes using solar glass sand have been created by Boral. Test loads of concrete were transported from the Tullamarine plant to its recently opened Bulleen Concrete Plant, which supplies concrete to the North East Link project, and a trial concrete slab has been laid on-site.
Boral says it has conducted an assessment of plastic properties including consistency and finishing and has undertaken hardened property testing for compliance with relevant standards.
“Results so far have been excellent,” the company says, “[The] solar glass sand is an environmentally sustainable replacement product to traditional sand, a natural diminishing resource essential to the building and construction industry.”
About the author
Desi Corbett
Desi is the Editor of Concrete in Australia and at the helm of our magazine for 8 years. She was behind the Institute's weekly news bulletins from 2016-2021 and is now writing our focused news items. Desi has been an engineering news and features journalist/editor across all disciplines since 2013 - part of a 30-year career writing for a wide range of industries.