1.

1 RAW MATERIALS OF GLASS MANUFUCTURING INDUSTRY

Raw materials(feedstocks)
 are the constituent parts input into a production process, where they are transformed into
finished goods.
 unprocessed material, or primary commodity, is a basic material that is used to produce 
goods, finished products, energy, or intermediate materials that are feedstock for future
finished products. 

Types of Glass Raw Materials for Glass Manufacturing

Process

Chalk soda ash (Na₂CO₃) and clean fresh

Soda lime glass
sand

Chalk, potassium carbonate (K₂CO₃) and

Potash lime glass
clean fresh sand

Litharge (lead monoxide PbO) or lead

Potash lead glass sesquioxide (Pb₃ O₄), Potassium carbonate
(K₂CO₃) or pure sand

Chalk, salt cake (Na₂SO₄), coke, ordinary

Common glass
sand.
Raw materials Approximate provides approximate proportion
in glass(wt%)
proportion(wt %)
Soda ash (Na2C03) 25 Soda (Na2O) 18

Limestone (CaC03) 10 Lime (CaO) 7

Silica sand (Si02) 65 Silica (SiO2) 75

1.2 PRODUCTION PROCESS OF GLASS
1. Batching of raw materials
 The main components, comprising silica sand, calcium
oxide, soda & magnesium are weighed and mixed into
batches to which recycled glass (cullet) is added.
 The use of ‘cullet’ reduces the consumption of energy.
 The materials are tested and stored for mixing later
under computerized control.
 This process includes formers, fluxes, stabilizers and
sometimes colorants according to recipe required for
the final product of the glass.
 The fine raw materials are subsequently mixed with
each other to achieve a homogenous composition and
then they are transferred into the melting furnace.
 2. Melting of raw materials in the furnace
 The batched raw materials pass from a mixing silo to a five-
chambered furnace where they become molten.
 Temperatures in the furnace reach up to 1600°C.
 The molten glass is then "floated" onto a bath of molten tin at
a temperature of about 1000°C. It forms a “ribbon” which is
normally between 5 and 6 mm.
 The glass, which is highly viscous, and the tin, which is very
fluid, do not mix and the contact surface between these two
materials is perfectly flat, giving the term “flat” glass to the
final product.
 Melting of raw materials at high temperature to form a molten
glass is the central phase in the manufacturing of glass.
 There are numerous ways to melt glass depending on the
desired product, its end use, the prevailing commercial factors
and the scale of operation.
 3. Fabrication of Glass into Desired Forms
 Techniques include cutting, grinding, laminating, and drilling.
 Glass fabrication requires polishing, bending, finishing and
edging in most of the cases.
 The molten glass is then "floated" onto a bath of molten tin
at a temperature of about 1000°C. It forms a “ribbon” which
is normally between 5 and 6 mm.
 Precision and quality are of the utmost importance in
fabrication processes.
 The glass, which is highly viscous, and the tin, which is very
fluid, do not mix and the contact surface between these two
materials is perfectly flat, giving the term “flat” glass to the
final product.
 So that Computer Numerical Control machines are used.
 4. Annealing in Glass Manufacturing Process
 On leaving the bath of molten tin, the glass - now at a
temperature of 600°C - has cooled down sufficiently to pass to an
annealing chamber called a lehr.
 It is a process of slowly cooling hot glass objects after it was
formed.
 It is the process to relieve residual internal stresses introduced
during manufacture.
 After all the glass manufacturing process, manufactured glass can
be stored as per the required shape & size and then sent it to the
retail outlet store.
 The glass is now hard enough to pass over rollers and is annealed,
which modifies the internal stresses, enabling it to be cut and
worked in a predictable way and ensuring flatness of the glass.
 As both surfaces are fire finished, they need no grinding or
polishing.
 5. Quality checks, automatic cutting, and storage
 In glass manufacturing process, quality is checked
before packaging process.
 After cooling, the glass undergoes rigorous quality
checks.
 Nowadays inspections are done automatically to
detect the defects in the glass which are not seen
through the naked eye.
 The final glass product is rejected if the bubble or
sand grain that refuses to melt.
 It is then cut into sheets of sizes varying up to a
maximum of 6000mm x 3660 mm which are, in turn,
automatically stacked, stored and ready for transport.
1.3 PROCESS PARAMETERS OF GLASS MANUFUCTURING INDUSTRY
General BAT conclusions for the glass manufacturing industry
BAT conclusions which may apply to the whole industrial sector, in
particular:
Implementation of an environmental management system
Prevention/minimisation of diffuse dust and gaseous emissions from material
storage and handling
Reduction/minimisation of the energy consumption by constant monitoring of
the operational parameters and a programmed maintenance of the furnace,
equipment, etc.
Careful selection of substances and raw materials
Monitoring of emissions and/or other relevant process parameters
Operation of waste treatment systems at full capacity during normal operating
conditions
Workshop on the implementation of BAT under new Directive 2010/75/EU –
Ankara, 20 July, 2011 17
Europ
 Conclusions
• The revised GLS BREF is the result of an extensive exchange of
• information and a compromise between different positions expressed by
• Industry and Member States
• About 3000 comments from different stakeholder have been processed
• during the review of the GLS BREF
• BAT conclusions for all steps of the glass manufacturing process have
• been derived from current data, taking into account the different
• characteristics and requirements of the glass sectors
• However, some BAT conclusions and BAT-AELs will present a challenge
• for the ingenuity of the glass industry
• it is a very costly material and has to be
handled with care. It requires regular cleaning.
In high rises external cleaning and
maintenance from can be very challenging.
Extensive use of glass might result in both
psychological and actual security concerns