1Q _ Explain the composition and fabrication of glass?

What are the types of

glasses used in building industry and explain their properties.
ANS_Glass is a substance that has certain properties, primarily fragility and
stiffness, which makes it similar to solids, but a disordered structure gives it a
liquid qualification. Glass has no thermal and electrical conductivity and does not
react with most of the known chemical compounds.

Components used to made glass

 The main components are:-

 Soda lime glass
 Silica sand (73%)
 Calcium oxide (9%)
 Soda (13%)
 Magnesium (4%)

Manufacturing process:-

There are 4 stages involved in manufacturing of glass

 Melting and refining

 Float Bath
 coating
 Annealing
 Inspection
 Cutting

 Melting and refining

The raw materials required for to make clear glass are: -

 silica sand (SiO2)
 sodium oxide (Na2O) from soda ash
 calcium oxide (CaO) from limestone/dolomite
 Dolomite (MgO)
 feldspar (Al2O3).
 These material are mixed in the right quality, and the entire batch is flown into
a furnace heated up to 1500 degree Celsius.
In order to impart color to the glass, certain metal oxides are also mixed in the
batch. For example:-
 NiO & CoO – to give grey tinted glasses (Oxides of Nickel & Cobalt)
 Fe2O3 – To give Green tinted glasses (oxides of iron which at times is
also present as impurity in Silica Sand)
 CoO – To give blue tinted glass (oxides of Cobalt)

 Float bath
The molten material from the furnace flows into the float bath this material
enters the bath at 1500 degree Celsius and leaves the bath at around 600
degree Celsius. Its shape at the exit is like a solid ribbon.

 Coating
Coatings that make profound changes in optical properties can be applied by
advanced high temperature technology to the cooling ribbon of glass.
Online Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) is the most significant advance in
the float process since it was invented.
CVD can be used to lay down a variety of coatings, a few microns thick, for
reflect visible and infra-red radiance for instance. Multiple coatings can be
deposited in the few seconds available as the glass flows beneath the coater
(e.g. Sunergy)

 Annealing
To remove the internal stresses built up in glass, a process called annealing
is done. This process allows the glass ribbon to pass through a layer which
eliminates any stresses on the glass surface and gradually cools it to give it
its final hardened form. This makes it easier to cut the glass and shape it.
 Inspection
Through acute and advanced inspection technology, more than a 100 million
inspections can be made throughout the glass manufacturing procedure to
identify air bubbles, stresses or grains of sand that refuse to melt. This is
essential in quality-proofing the final form of glass
 Cutting
 The entire process of glass making is finally complete when diamond steels
trim off selvedge – stressed edges- and cut ribbon to size dictated by the
computer. Glass is finally sold only in square meters.

Types of glasses used in building industry and their properties.

 Wired glass: - It has high resistance to thermal and electric shock as compared to
float glass. Wired glass is less expensive
 Fiberglass:- chemical resistance ,dimensional stability, good thermal properties
 Rook wool glass:- it has a low bulk density, high fiber toughness, low thermal
conductivity, porous, and relatively high temperature resistance
 Laminated glass:- it is tough and protect from UV radiation and insulates sound
by 50%
 Structural glass:- it is hardness and brittleness, weather resistance , insulation ,
chemical resistance
 Potash lime glass:- Potash glass is slightly denser than soda-lime glass; it passes
from the molten to the rigid state more quickly
 Potash lead glass:- The most common uses of lead crystal glass are drinking
glasses, ornaments, decanters, jewelry, optical lenses, enamels and lacquers, glass
sealants and solders
 Tempered glass:- it has thermal shock resistance ,mechanical strength , tensile
strength, bending strength