Imagine a 3D printer for glass that doesn't need a giant factory to work. Instead of shipping heavy glass waste to a distant plant to be melted down, this machine uses lasers to reshape waste glass right where it is. You put in old glass and pick a new item you want to create, making recycling as simple as using a home appliance.
Traditional glass recycling is too expensive and energy-intensive because it requires melting tons of glass in centralized plants. This makes it impractical for remote areas and limits the types of glass that can be recycled.
A 'Glass Laser Morphing' technology. This is a machine that uses lasers to transform glass waste into customized technical products on-site.
If you are a waste collector dealing with thousands of tons of glass waste in remote areas — this project developed a laser morphing system that allows for on-site recycling. This removes the need for expensive logistics and heavy-duty centralized melting plants.
If you are a glassware producer dealing with rigid, high-energy production lines — this project developed a multipurpose laser system that creates customized technical products. This allows for flexible, low-carbon production of personalized items.
If you are a packaging company dealing with the environmental impact of plastics — this project developed a way to enable virtually infinite reuse of glass. This helps replace problematic plastic materials with high-quality recycled glass.
Based on available project data, specific pricing is not provided, but the technology aims to reduce costs by eliminating expensive logistics and high energy use associated with traditional melting.
The project proposes a multipurpose system capable of being located on any site, suggesting a decentralized scaling model rather than a single large factory.
Based on available project data, there are no specific details on licensing terms, though the project is coordinated by the Universidad de Vigo.
It replaces the traditional centralized process with an on-site model where users feed waste into a machine and select a desired output product.
The project period runs from 2024-01-01 to 2026-12-31, indicating the development phase is ongoing.
The consortium is heavily research-oriented, consisting of 6 partners from 4 countries. It is composed of 2 universities, 3 research centers, and only 1 SME, with a 0% industry ratio. This suggests the project is currently focused on high-risk technical validation rather than immediate commercial deployment.
Contact the Universidad de Vigo research office
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