Alfred University set to host Glass Sustainability Conference

ALFRED, NY – Alfred University’s Inamori School of Engineering places a special emphasis on pursuing initiatives aimed at protecting the environment, offering a bachelor’s degree in renewable energy engineering, and pursuing numerous research programs promoting sustainability. Next week, representatives in academics, science and research, and business will be welcomed to the Alfred University campus to participate in the Glass Sustainability Conference.

The conference is scheduled for Thursday and Friday, Sept. 8 and 9, and features several speakers who will discuss sustainability initiatives in the field of glass engineering and in the glass industry. Presenters include faculty and students, as well as entrepreneurs with businesses focused on glass reuse and recycling.

Glass Sustainability Conference Schedule

Collin Wilkinson, assistant professor of glass science at Alfred University and an organizer for the conference, said glass plays a prominent role in green initiatives.

“Glass has amazing properties. Most every renewable energy method relies on glass,” Wilkinson said, noting the use of glass in solar panels and fiberglass in windmill components. “Glass itself is infinitely recyclable; it can be recycled over and over, however many times we need.”

Several of the presenters at next week’s conference are entrepreneurs whose focus is on finding ways to improve glass reuse or to develop products that make use of recycled glass. They include:

        ·  Cynthia Andela of Andela Products, an industry leader in the designing and manufacturing of equipment that repurposes recycled glass into user friendly aggregates and sand.

        ·  Greg Palmer of Vitricity, a start-up company that is using glass material to create solid state batteries for electric vehicles.

        ·  Archie Filshill of AeroAggregates, which Wilkinson describes as “one of the greenest manufacturing companies in the United States.” AeroAggregates uses waste glass to create a “glass foam” aggregate material used as an ultra-lightweight geotechnical fill.

Wilkinson stressed the important role private enterprise will play in promoting sustainability. “Entrepreneurship is a huge part of getting to a green economy,” he said. “We need to develop new technologies to help make the world more sustainable.”

Efforts to promote glass sustainability abound at Alfred University, and include:

        ·  Alfred University glass science faculty Alexis Clare, professor of glass science, and William LaCourse, retired professor of glass science, secured a grant to partner with Hillcrest Industries, of Attica, NY, a leading manufacturer of glass microbeads used for reflective road marking, to develop a process that will increase Hillcrest’s recycling efficiency.

        ·  The University’s Center for Glass Innovation is using $1.7 million in funding from the state’s Environmental Protection Fund to research ways New York State-based glass manufacturers can increase their utilization of recycled glass feedstock. This initiative, a partnership between Alfred University and the state Department of Environmental Conservation, will play an instrumental role in helping recycling markets and municipal recycling programs find new and more profitable ways to recycle glass. 

        ·  A project with the FISU World University Winter Games, in which Alfred University is using recycled glass to create the awards medallions for the Games.

Alfred University is a leader in research of glass science and new methods of improving sustainability in the glass industry. Wilkinson said Alfred University—the only institution in country offering a doctoral degree in glass science—is unique in that its glass science program is on par with much larger colleges and universities, like Penn State, Clemson, UCLA and Rensselaer, which are renowned as centers for glass engineering. “We are the only small school doing this level of glass research.”

Among the conference presenters with ties to Alfred University:

        ·  Gabrielle Gaustad ’04 (BS, ceramic engineering), dean of the Inamori School of Engineering.

        ·  John Mauro ’01, PhD ’06, professor of materials science at Penn State University. While at Corning Incorporated, Mauro—who earned bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in glass science engineering from Alfred University—was a co-inventor of Gorilla Glass, which is used on the screens of iPhones and Android phones.

        ·  William LaCourse, retired professor of glass science, who will present the annual Scholes Lecture.

        ·  Graduate students Charles Bellows and Elizabeth Tsekrekas, PhD candidates in glass science.

        ·  Laura Adkins ’07 (BS, glass science), a glass engineer at Corning Incorporated.

        ·  John Simmins ’84 (BS, ceramic science), PhD ’90 (ceramic science), executive director of Alfred University’s Center for Advanced Ceramic Technology.

Wilkinson noted that ongoing research, like that being done at Alfred University, is needed to improve the methods with which glass is recycled.

He noted that the quality of glass products made with remelted recycled glass diminishes when the percentage of reused glass material reaches 30+ percent of the raw materials. “There is no reason we cannot innovate to bring that percentage up” and thus increase the amount of glass waste available for reuse, Wilkinson commented. One way to do that is to educate the public and recycling industry on ways to best provide clean recycled glass.

New uses for recycled glass must be developed as well, he added. ““What else can we use recycled glass for? It’s a huge problem, but it’s also a huge opportunity.”

As part of the two-day conference, musician Dennis James will present a concert playing instruments made from glass, including the Franklin Armonica and Cristal Baschet. The concert is set for Thursday, Sept. 8, at 7:30 p.m. in Miller Theater.