10/5/2020 Manufacturing Glass Insulators

Sunday, May 10, 2020     

 ARTICLES BY CATEGORY  BUYER’S GUIDE LABORATORY GUIDE CONTACT US ADVERTISE + 

Subscribe

Your Email

PLEASE SIGN ME UP

Glass   Insulators   Technical Article  

Manufacturing Glass Insulators

 April 13, 2019  Glass Insulators, Insulators  6 min read

  

Production of toughened glass insulator discs begins with a highly automated process aimed at
guaranteeing a consistent, perfectly homogeneous chemical composition. Raw materials including
quartz, sand, soda ash, calcitite, feldspar and dolomite, among others, are stored in computer-
controlled silos. All various components undergo chemical analysis and screening to ensure that they
are of equal basic consistency. These materials are then combined using a sophisticated batching
system that ensures the same precise composition and fed into a furnace using channels equipped
with magnets to remove metallic contaminants.
The presence of even tiny amounts of metal, measured in only a few parts per million, can result in
more iron oxide in the glass and a resulting greenish tinge. About 1/3 of this mass is cullet, i.e.
previously- formed glass discs that shattered after forming or were rejected downstream during
inspection, but also includes unused gobs of glass from mold changeovers. The presence of cullet,
whose relative proportion varies depending on size and design of the glass shell, contributes to the
stability and consistency of the manufacturing process.

https://www.inmr.com/manufacturing-glass-insulators/ 1/4
10/5/2020 Manufacturing Glass Insulators
Cullet accounts for about a third of mass fed into closely monitored furnace from computer-controlled
batching silos.
CLICK TO ENLARGE

One of the critical assets in the production process is the furnace, typically designed to be gas-
powered with some electric boosting when necessary. There are normally two heating channels
which alternate about every 15 to 20 minutes such that the heated emissions exiting from one
channel function to pre-heat the intake air and thereby boost the ame of the other channel.
This generates optimized heating. A sophisticated command and control system measures all key
production parameters to assure complete homogeneity of the molten mass. This requires
continuous stability of the furnace, designed to run for years at temperatures up to 1280°C
without need for maintenance shutdown. Every aspect is monitored until a precise quantity of
molten glass gob, free of bubbles, inclusions or impurities, is delivered by special feeders directly
into pre-heated molds.

Gob delivered to pre-heated mold before pressing. Spinning, after removal from
mold, allows internal screw-shape to form inside glass shell.
CLICK TO ENLARGE

Advertisement

These molds, placed on a rotating machine, receive the glass gob and dictate the outer shape and
dimensions of the shell. Internal geometry is determined by stamp devices inserted into the molten
mass within the mold cavity. Pressing is critical not only because it imparts the nal internal shape but
also to assure uniform thickness throughout – a factor that will minimize risk of shattering during the
toughening process that follows. The temperature of the glass at this stage is just over 1000°C,
signi cantly cooler than when in the furnace. Importance of consistent thickness is evident whenever
there is need to change molds to produce an insulator of di erent design.

https://www.inmr.com/manufacturing-glass-insulators/ 2/4
10/5/2020 Manufacturing Glass Insulators

After thermal shocks in cold water bath, glass

insulators go to quality control inspection.
Glass shells are toughened by process of
Defective or damaged units are returned for
forced cooling that imparts desired
use as cullet on conveyor belt at left.
compressive stresses at surfaces.
CLICK TO ENLARGE
CLICK TO ENLARGE

Such changeovers may require di erent volumes of molten glass to be drawn from the furnace for
each gob and breakage rate can rise slightly until the adjusted process stabilizes. After molding and
spinning, glass shells undergo the critical toughening process. Here, they are exposed to rapid surface
cooling using jets of compressed air even as their inside remains extremely hot. As shells move through
the machine, their inside cools and shrinks in a process that creates the compressive stresses desired
at the surface. To achieve this e ect, the glass must be totally clean since presence of even tiny
inclusions can lead to shattering. This toughening process is an important determinant of service
performance by ensuring no propagation of micro-cracks in the dielectric over time and load-
temperature cycling. Compressive pre-stresses on the surface of glass shells also signi cantly increase
their mechanical resistance.
After toughening, the glass shells are transferred through another thermal shock by immersion in cold
water, as required in the standards. This entire process of repeated cycles of alternate heating and
cooling helps eliminate the large majority of units containing inclusions or other defects since these will
usually shatter under the rapid temperature change. Basically, thermal shocking destroys as many
defective pieces as possible while they are still in the factory and not yet installed on the line. Finally,
there is a close visual inspection of each shell and any defective units are placed onto a conveyor for re-
cycling as cullet. Those units that pass inspection are basically complete and ready for assembly of
ttings.
Acceptance rates for shells in a glass insulator factory will vary among suppliers but a gure of around
90 percent is generally considered good. Quality control sta at some manufacturers use counters
installed on each production line to record and track the rate of every category of defect identi ed
during visual inspection. Production sta will then study this data on a regular basis and discuss
whether certain process parameters need to be adjusted, such as angle of burners, furnace
temperature or gob feeding.

Assembly of cap and pin hardware onto glass discs has been made increasing automated to improve
production e ciency and eliminate in uences from worker handling.
CLICK TO ENLARGE

After storage, glass shells move to the next step, which consists of attachment of the metallic cap
and pin to every unit. Hardware is rst dipped in pitch to reduce risk of corrosion at key
interfaces and also to provide a protective bu er between the glass and metallic surfaces that
have di erent coe cients of expansion with temperature change. The ttings are then
transported using an elaborate system of overhead conveyors to stations where production
workers attach them to the glass shells using precise amounts of pre-mixed special cement. After
assembly, there is curing in a hot water bath, whose temperature depends on the mechanical
rating of the insulator. For example, 300 kN discs are cured for about 1½ hours at about 70°C.
The last stage in production consists of testing, most of which is performed on production
samples at internal laboratory facilities. One test that is performed on every unit after curing is

https://www.inmr.com/manufacturing-glass-insulators/ 3/4
10/5/2020 Manufacturing Glass Insulators

for tensile mechanical strength, which is done at 50% of SML rating. A well-managed assembly
operation aims for such consistency in distribution of average failure load as to meet 3 or even 4
sigma criteria. The mechanical behavior of high quality glass discs is typically so good that even
should the dielectric shell shatter, the stub will continue to meet the designated rating. Testing is
performed according to relevant industry standards or to satisfy demands from customers
whose requirements may be di erent from or more stringent than those mandated by IEC. One
example is RIV testing, usually done at 10 kV, 1MHz with a maximum permissible 34 dB. But
some utilities request testing at 30 kV, 1 MHz and 52 dB. Similarly, some customers require
insulation resistance measurements or impact testing, almost no longer required today but
sometimes demanded at an even higher level than speci ed in the standards. Another example
of a special test requirement is where the glass string is hung at angles up to 30° inside a tunnel
and exposed to wind speeds of 20 m/s. If any noise is emitted, the string does not pass.
 

  

← Access Technical Articles by Experts on Glass Insulators at INMR.com

Rules for UAVs in U.S. Bene t Power System Applications →

About Us Content Advertising in INMR

INMR is an independent expert technical content website for View Past Issues INMR.com is visited by over
power engineers, testing laboratories, utilities, and equipment 50,000 power engineers
manufacturers. We specialize in insulators, surge arresters, INMR POWER ENGINEERS each year. List your
bushings, cable accessories and more. HANDBOOK company in the INMR
With over 200,000 page views online per year, power engineers BUYER’S GUIDE and
trust INMR to be their independent source of information. Wallpaper Archive LABORATORY GUIDE to
Our INMR WORLD CONGRESS events enable this community to increase your exposure!
Purchase Photos
exchange ideas and experiences with an international audience Contact us for advertising
and with key industry representatives. options at info@inmr.com

Download Media Kit

Contact Us

Copyright © 1993 - 2020

Zimmar Holdings Ltd./INMR.     
Reproduction in whole or in part is strictly prohibited without
previous written permission of Zimmar Holdings Ltd./INMR

https://www.inmr.com/manufacturing-glass-insulators/ 4/4