breakdown of glass?

Question

We all know that plastic takes thousands of years to break down and become one with earth again so we shouldn't just throw it away. but how long does glass take? how important is it to recycle glass?

Answer 1

I could see some good answers on the nature of glass. Glass breaks into fragments and becomes pebbles and sand, unlike plastic which doesn't. But it's good to recycle glass because this saves some energy needed to transform raw materials (mostly sand) into glass. It's less energy intensive to make glass out of glass.

Answer 2

Glass has a very long life depending on what happens to it. I have personally dug up a roman glass bottle about 200 AD which had the neck broken but was otherwise perfect and of course roman window glass is found frequently. Glass is made from sand but it is easier to melt existing glass and reform it so it takes less energy

Answer 3

i think it's important to recycle glass only because it will save the time and money of creating new glass. Companies can just melt down the old glass and creat new bottles etc. for products. if they have to spend resources again and again finding the right sand, transporting it and melting down to glass then the price of their products will have to steadily increase too. Plus, recycling might prevent people from getting hurt by glass that was just trown in the garbage or streets.

Answer 4

Glass breaks down into smaller and smaller bits and pieces .. it is made from sand. Glass, once crushed will recycle faster than any plastic. Good Luck ! :)

Answer 5

there's glass objects from china and egypt that are seven thousand years old ...i think all this recycling stuff is just the government's (people who control the money) trying to lay the blame for their mess ups on us.. they've known what was happening to my childrens planet for fifty years or more... they employ the cleverest people in the world.... all we can do is not make it worse but dont feel guilty for a plastic bottle or two when jet liners are chucking tons of CO2 high up in the stratosphere

Answer 6

not as long as plastic,glass is actually composed of sand(silica) and it wears down and erodes the same as rock,I would say (my opinion) that glass is in about a hundred year range(depends on the thickness and the environment breaking it down)water will do this fast in a current,wind and time...much slower

Answer 7

Hi, Glass (silicon dioxide) takes a VERY long time to breakdown. That is mostly what sand is.

Answer 8

Glass is also pretty much vitrified rock! It would not ever biodegrade... very much like molten rock glass produced by volcanoes... i'd say recycle, it's more important than your life!

Answer 9

um volcanoes make glass. But plastic seems to be the thing that causes cancer. Or at least that is the perspective I am getting from it.

Answer 10

Did you know glass is actually a luiquid form. I dont think its relevent to the question...but interesting!!