A: Glass Materials
I. Textured Glass
Deep-wave water textured glass
Image from Fusion Glass Designs
1. How is this glass composed?
There are two primary way for this glass to be produce, by kiln-cast and by standard float glass. The kiln-cast process occurs by forming the float glass over the moulds to create the textures. The glass is heated to melt into the mould and cooled to release the final product. The standard float glass is laid over a ceramic sand, plaster or concrete moulds. The glass is heat, relaxing the glass material so that it can pick up the mould tecture, then it is slowly cooled and annealed.
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Type
| Textured Glass
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Main material
| Kiln cast and standard float glass
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Thickness
| At least 4-25mm
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Size
| Available up to 3150 - 1750mm
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Typical Uses
| Partitions, doors, screens, flooring, lighting, cladding, balustrades, counters, sculpture
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II. Gorilla Glass
Gorilla Glass
Source from Corning.com.
1. What is this used for?
It is an environmentally friendly product that uses alkali-aluminosilicate thin sheet glass. The texture is a composition of chemicals durability and strength on most applications. The sheet is both strong and damage resistant.
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Type
| Gorilla Glass
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Main material
| Alkali-aluminosilicate
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Thickness
| At least 0.5-2.0mm
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Size
| Available up to 1250x900mm thin s
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Chemical makeup
| HCI (5%), NH4F:HF (10%), HF (10%), NaOH
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Typical Uses
| Protective cover for electronic displays; cell phones, laptop, mobile devices, touchscreen, optical components, and high strength glass.
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III. Fibre Optics
Image from Wiki
1. How is this glass composed?
Fiber optics is a strand of glass, thin and long, that enable light and electrical pulses to pass through, allowing information to pass through. The round corners of the component and its properties enhance the ability of light and waves to transmit by looping, bending, twisting, and winding through the glass. It is composed of glass core with a silica sleeve where the core allows the transmission of data and the silica sleeve stops the information from going beyond the tube.
How is it made?
The fiber optic is produce by a process call modified chemical vaopor deposition. Through this process, oxygen is bubble through silicon chloride liquid, germanium chloride, and other chemicals to bond the pyhsical and optical properties such as refraction, coefficient of expansion, and melting point. Then gas vapors are conducted in a synthetic silica or quartz tube where the torch is turned up and moves along the outside tube. This source of heat causes two things:
- The silicon and gernamium chemicals react with oxygen, forming the silicon dioxid and germanium dioxide.
- Silicon and gernanium dioxide bond together, fusing itself into the glass tube.
The glass purity is maintained by adding corrosion-resistant plastic in the system, controlling the flow and composition of the mixture.
Fiber optics atomic structure with silica
Image from Wiki
Fiber optics process
Image from Hikari optic bozai
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Type
| Fiber Optics
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Main material
| pure optical glass, silicon dioxide, germanium dioxide, silica sleeve
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Thickness
| At least 2-12mm
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Size
| Available up to any length
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Typical Uses
| Communications, lighting, wireless, networking, electrical devices, etc.
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IV. Self-cleaning Glass
Self Cleaning Glass
Source from Pilkington Activ.
1. What is this used for?
A simple glass sheet with an ultraviolet light absorber to break down and loosen deposits that make it easy for the rain to wash away. The product, developed by Teflon needs no secondary process other than a simple application of the cerium oxide film on the exterior. The material must absorb enough UV rays in order for the system to work.
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Type
| Self-cleaning Glass
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Main material
| Silicate, cerium oxide film
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Thickness
| At least 0.5-2.0mm
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Size
| Available up to any size
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Chemical makeup
| SiO2, CeO2
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Typical Uses
| Commercial glass, office buildings, houses, automotive.
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V. Tempered Bent Glass
Tempered Bent Glass
Source from Precision Glass Bending Co.
Image from momoy.com
1. How is this glass used?
Various uses range from architectural elements like a curtain wall, green house, to glass domes.
2. How is this glass composed?
3. How did the make up of the component change from other glasses?
VI. Film Glass type
Resistive touch panels
Image from Sony Labs
Image from Sony Labs
1. How is this glass used?
This type of glass is typically used for electronic devices such as; audio and visual, cell phones, and game machines.
2. How is this glass composed?
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Type
| FG Type
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Main material
| PE base film-glass
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Thickness
| At least 0.96 mm
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Rate for transparency
| At least 82 %
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Input method
| Polyethylene pen or finger
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FPC
| Polyimide base, Cu wiring
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Size
| 2 to 5 inches
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