1

GLASS

hard, brittle, usually transparent or translucent substance, produced by fusing silica together
with a flux & a stabilizer into a mass that cools to a rigid condition without crystallization.
It is made chiefly from sand, soda & lime. Major ingredient is sand (silicon dioxide).
Thicknesses of glass are:
a.
2.5mm through 3mm called single-strength
b.
6mm to 22mm double-strength
c.
25mm (on special order)
HISTORY OF GLASS

Glass appeared on earth in a natural state long before man learned how to produce it.

Slender glass tubes, called fulgurites, commonly called petrified

lightning, are often found on beaches that have been struck by lightning. The heat of the
lightning has fused the sand & any other matter near it into glass.

Shiny black glass, called obsidian, is found around volcanoes all over
the world. The terrific heat of a volcanic eruption fused rocks & sands into glass.
Primitive men used obsidian for making knives, arrowheads, jewelry & money.
No one is sure exactly when or where man began to make glass. Scientists have found manmade glass relics, in the form of glaze on ceramic vessels, in the Middle East that date from
3000 BC. The manufacture of glass was widespread in the Middle East for 500 years before
the birth of Christ. But the process was slow & expensive that only kings & priests could
afford glass objects.
The first glass vessels were produced about 1500 BC in Egypt & Mesopotamia. The next
300 years, glassmaking was extremely successful then decline.
It was revived in Mesopotamia in the 700s BC & in Egypt in the 500s BC. For the next 500
years, Egypt, Syria & neighboring countries along the east coast of Mediterranean Sea were
glass manufacturing center.
The first Golden Age of Glass was the first four centuries of the Christian Era under Roman
rule. The celebrated Portland Vase, was the excellent example of the art during the period. It
is now regarded as the most valuable glass art object in the world.
The first glass window was manufactured in AD 50.
Some important developments in Glass are:
1674 - George Ravenscroft of England invented lead glass
1688 - Louis Lucas of France produced plate glass by casting which les to the use of mirror
1790 - Pierre-Louis Guinard made good optical glass by stirring glass in pot in France
1930 - Insulated window glass (Thermophane) was invented by C.D. Haven in USA

FLAT GLASS

used chiefly in windows. Also used in mirrors, room dividers & some kind of furniture.
Some flat glass are reheated & sagged (curved) over molds for automobile windshields,
concave mirrors, etc.

2
BASIC TYPES OF FLAT GLASS
SHEET GLASS

a flat, soda-lime-silica glass fabricated by drawing the molten glass horizontally or

vertically from a furnace (drawn glass) or by forming a cylinder, dividing it lengthwise
& flattening it (cylinder glass) & then annealed.

The fire-polished surfaces are not perfectly parallel, resulting in some distortion of
vision. Inherent wave distortion is most noticeable in the larger sizes & thicker sheets; to
minimize this distortion, glass should be glazed with the wave running horizontally.
PLATE GLASS

a flat, soda-lime-silica glass formed by rolling molten glass into a plate (rolled glass) that
is subsequently ground & polished after cooling.

It provides virtually clear, undistorted vision.

FLOAT GLASS

a flat, soda-lime-silica glass that is extremely smooth & nearly distortion-free,

manufactured by pouring molten glass onto a surface of molten tin & allowing it to cool
slowly.

Flat, parallel surfaces minimize distortion & eliminate the need for grinding & polishing.

Float glass is the successor of plate glass & accounts for the majority of flat-glass
production.
VARIATIONS OF THE THREE BASIC TYPES OF GLASS
TEMPERED GLASS

annealed glass that is reheated to just below the softening point (approx. 1200 oF) & then
rapidly cooled to induce compressive stresses in the surfaces & edges of the glass &
tensile stresses in the interior.

Has three to five times the resistance of annealed glass to impact & thermal stresses but
cannot be altered after fabrication. When fractured, it breaks in relatively harmless
particles.
HEAT-STRENGTHENED GLASS

annealed glass that is partially tempered by a process of reheating & sudden cooling.

Has about twice the strength of annealed glass of the same thickness.
LAMINATED GLASS

two or more piles of flat glass bonded under heat & pressure to alternate layers of
polyvinyl butyral resin than retains the fragments if the glass is broken.

Qualifies as a safety glazing material; special types are available that are burglar
resistant, bullet resisting or soundproofing.

Also called safety glass.

PATTERNED OR ROLLED & ROUGH CAST GLASS

Translucent glass with linear or geometric patterns embossed on one or both sides;
similar to plate glass but not ground & polished.

glass having an irregular surface pattern formed in the rolling process to obscure vision
or to diffuse light.
Hot glass can be rolled into sheets with many different surface patterns for use where
light transmission is desired.
Also called figured glass.

SPANDREL GLASS

opaque glass produced by fusing a ceramic frit to the interior surface of tempered or
heat-strengthened glass.

Used for concealing structural elements in the spandrel area (curtain wall construction;
bands of wall around the edges of floors) in glass curtain.

It is usually tempered or heat-strengthened to resist the thermal stresses that can be

caused by accumulations of solar heat behind the spandrel.
WIRED GLASS

flat or patterned glass having a square or diamond wire mesh embedded within it to
prevent shattering in the event of breakage or excessive heat.

The wire greatly increases the resistance to shattering through impact.

When it breaks from thermal stress, the wires hold the sheet of glass together.

Considered a safety glazing material & may be used as a fire resistant material to glaze
fire doors & windows.
TINTED GLASS

glass having chemical admixture to absorb a portion of the radiant heat & visible light
that strike it.

Iron oxide gives the glass a pale blue-green tint; cobalt oxide & nickel imparts a grayish
tint; selenium infuses a bronze tint.

Controls glare & also reduces light transmission.

Also called heat-absorbing glass.

REFLECTIVE COATED GLASS

glass having a thin, translucent metallic coating bonded to the exterior or interior surface
to reflect a portion of the light & radiant heat that strike it.

Appears as mirror from the outside on a bright day & at night, with lights on inside the
building, they appear as dark but transparent glass.
INSULATING GLASS

a glass unit consisting of two or more sheets of glass separated by hermetically-sealed

airspaces to provide thermal insulation & restrict condensation;

Two kinds of edge seals are fused glass edges & a metal spline & organic sealant.

Glass edge units have a 3/16 air space; metal edge units have a or air space.
SECURITY GLASS

laminated glass having exceptional tensile & impact strength, consisting of multiple
plies of glass bonded under heat & pressure to interlayers of polyvinyl butyral resin.
SPECIALTY GLASS

4
1. Bullet-resistant Glass thick, multi-layer laminated glass (bullet-proof)
2. Colored Structural Glass heavy plate glass, in many colors, used for buildings exterior
facing & also for interior walls, partitions & tabletops.
3. Opal Glass has small particles in the body of the glass which disperse the light passing
through it, which makes it appear milky. Used as lighting fixture.
4. Foam Glass when it is cut, looks like a lack honeycomb filled with many tiny cells of
gas. It is so light that it floats on water. Used as heat insulators in buildings.
5. Heat-resistant Glass high in silica & usually contains boric oxide.
6. Laboratory Glassware made from heat-resistant glass to withstand severe temperature
shock, & much more resistant to chemical attack.
7. Glass for electrical uses transparent, heat-resistant, resistant to flow of electricity &
tightly sealed to metal without cracking.
8. Heat conducting Glass sprayed with a thin, almost invisible coating of certain
chemicals. This film will conduct enough electricity to heat the glass that are useful as
food warmers or room heaters.
9. Glass Tubing made from different kinds of glass in many sizes that are used for
fluorescent & incandescent bulbs, neon signs, radio & television tubes, glass piping &
chemical apparatus.
10. Radiation-absorbing & radiation-transmitting Glass can transmit, modify or block heat,
light, x-rays & other types of rays. Specially coated one-way glass prevents anybody to
see a person watching them from the other side.
11. Optical Glass pure, almost flawless & painstakingly produce for use as eyeglasses,
microscopes, telescopes, camera lenses & many less familiar instruments.
12. Laser Glass type of optical glass that contains fluorescent materials, that produces an
intense, narrow stream of light laser light.
13. Invisible Glass used principally for coated camera lenses & eyeglasses. A special
chemical film (coating) on the glass decreases the normal loss of light by reflection,
allowing more light to pass through the glass.
14. Photosensitive Glass can be exposed to ultraviolet light & to heat so that any pattern or
photograph can be produced within the body of glass itself.
15. Photochemical Glass special composition of photosensitive glass which can be cut by
acid. Any design can be reproduced on the glass from a photographic film, then the glass
is dipped in acid, with the exposed areas eaten away, leaving the design in the glass in
three dimensions.
16. Photochromic Glass darkens when exposed to ultraviolet rays & clears up when the
rays are removed. It is used for sunglasses, windows & instrument controls.
17. Fiberglass fine but solid rod of glass, often less than 1/20 of the width of human hair.
18. Optical Glass - specially coated glass fibers that can be bent to transmit light around
corners or into areas to small for a light bulb.
19. Acoustical Glass - laminated or insulating glass used for sound control.
20. Obscure Glass glass having one or both sides acid-etched or sandblasted to obscure
vision.
HOW GLASS IS MADE

Glass is made in a factory which is far different than any other factories producing other
types of materials. It has huge bins or silos that hold the raw materials, such as:

a. sand, soda ash, limestone & borax

b. cullet, which is waste glass that is added to aid the melting process
These materials are all dry powders use in mixing & melting.
They are then shaped into five main methods. These Shaping Methods are:
1.
Blowing
2.
Pressing
3.
Drawing
4.
Casting
5.
Rolling
Pressing & casting are the oldest forms of glass-working. Presses force the glass into casts
or molds. The outside surface of the object is formed by the mold itself.
After shaping, they undergo annealing process to restore the strength. This is done by
subjecting the glasses to a high temperature & then slowly cooling them. This process serves
to balance the various strains & tensions on the inside & outside of the object, producing a
glass of great toughness.
Tempering & other finishing techniques may also be used to further strengthen the glass.
Lampworking involves heating finished glass & reshaping it by hand, by craftsman to create
miniature animals & other glass objects.
Glass can be decorated by etching, sandblasting, scoring (cutting), copper-wheel engraving
& fired decorations.

FIBER GLASS

fiberglass or fibrous glass is glass in the form of fine fibers (threads). The fibers may be
many times finer than human hair & may look & feel like silk. The flexible glass fibers are
stronger than steel & it will not burn, stretch, rot or fade.
METHODS OF PRODUCING FIBER GLASS

Fiberglass is made from sand & other raw materials used to make ordinary glass. Strands of
fiberglass may be made in different ways.
1. One method is by heating the raw materials and formed into small glass marbles to
check impurities.

The marbles are then melted and run down through tiny holes at the bottom of the
furnace.

A spinning drum catches the fibers of hot glass and winds them on bobbins like
threads on spools.The drum can pull out 2 miles (3.2 km) of fibers in a minute. Up to
95 miles (153 km.) of fiber can be drawn from one marble 5/8 inch (16 mm.) in
diameter.

The fiber can be twisted together into yarns and cords, after which may already be
woven into cloth, tape and other kinds of fabrics.
2. The other method which is called direct melt process, the marble-making steps are
omitted.

Bulk fiberglass or fiberglass wool is made somewhat differently. Sand and other raw
materials are melted in a furnace, which then flows from 8-15 inches (20-38 cm.)

6
long. These fibers are gathered on a conveyor belt in the form of a white wool-like
mass.

HISTORY OF GLASS FIBER

The Egyptians used coarse glass fibers for decorative purpose before the time of Christ.
Edward Drummond Libbey, an American glass manufacturer, exhibited a dress made of
fiberglass and silk at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, USA in 1893.
During the WW-I, fiberglass was made in Germany as substitute for asbestos.
Finally, in experiments conducted from 1931 1939, the Owens Illinois Glass Company
(now called Owens-Illinois, Inc.) and the Corning Glass Works, developed the practical
methods of making fiberglass commercially.

FIBER OPTICS

Fiber optics is a field of physics that deals with the transfer of light from one place to
another, through long, thin, flexible fibers of glass or plastic called optical fibers.
Although light travels in a straight line, optical fibers can transfer light around corners or
along a twisting path. The sides of the fiber reflect the light and keep it inside as the fiber
bends and turns.
Improved fibers have thin core and a special outer covering called cladding. The cladding
helps bend the light back to the core.
Usage:
In medicine, physicians use it as instruments to examine the patients internal organs.
In communication, it can transmit television programs, telephone conversations and
other forms of broadcasting.
Sounds and pictures can be sent in varying amount of light sent. At the receiving end of
the fibers, a receiver changes the varying amounts of light into copies of the original
sounds or pictures.