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GLASS MAKING THROUGH THE AGES. Martin McBride Carterton U3A. GLASS MAKING THROUGH THE AGES. ORIGINS OF GLASS DECORATIVE GLASS MAKING EARLY FLAT GLASS MANUFACTURE MODERN GLASS PRODUCTION. WHO AM I … WHAT DO I KNOW ABOUT GLASS.
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GLASS MAKING THROUGH THE AGES Martin McBride Carterton U3A
GLASS MAKING THROUGH THE AGES ORIGINS OF GLASS DECORATIVE GLASS MAKING EARLY FLAT GLASS MANUFACTURE MODERN GLASS PRODUCTION
WHO AM I … WHAT DO I KNOW ABOUT GLASS • Applied Chemistry Specialised in Glass Technology and Fuel Technology • One of the “Old School” • Joined Pilkington Glass in 1963 and retired from Pilkington Glass in 1997. • Worked in Mexico, Australia, Sweden, South Africa, Visited Germany, France, Denmark, Poland, USA, • After retiring worked in Egypt
WHAT IS GLASS • Glass is not a solid. • Glass is a supercooled liquid. • A brittle transparent solid with irregular atomic structure. • A container for holding liquids while drinking.
COMPOSITION OF GLASS • Normal window glass .... Soda Lime70% SiO2 ....... Sand20% Na2CO3 .....Soda Ash10% Ca2Co3 ......Lime • Lead Glass contains 20% PbO ....Lead oxide • Borosilicate contains at least5% Boric Oxide
ORIGINS OF GLASS • What is a Fulgerite • A naturally occurring form of glass • Created when lightening strikes the desert
OBSIDIAN • Obsidian is formed by volcanic activity • Felsic lava extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimum crystal growth • Felsic substances are high in silica Another form of natural glass
OBSIDIAN • Because of this lack of crystal structure, obsidian blade edges can reach almost molecular thinness, leading to its ancient use as projectile points and blades, and its modern use as surgical scalpel blades
OBSIDIAN • Mammoth Lakes in California has an obsidian dome • At considerable personal expense I have obtained some samples of obsidian • So each of these samples cost me £1000 !!!
OBSIDIAN • Now here are some holiday photos
OBSIDIAN • Now this sample was too big !!!
ORIGINS OF GLASS MANUFACTURE • No one knows exactly when or where glass was first made. • Glass appears to have been produced as far back as the second millennium BC by the Egyptians or the Phoenicians. • The Egyptians used a method called core-forming. A shaped core was made of clay and dung, then molten glass was wrapped around it and shaped by rolling it on a smooth surface.
ORIGINS OF GLASS MANUFACTURE Early Roman Glass Samples
ORIGINS OF GLASS MANUFACTURE Early Roman Glass Samples Mid 4th Century
NEXT STAGE • Around the end of the 1st century BC, a new method, glass blowing revolutionised glass production.
DECORATIVE GLASS MURANO • MURANO glassmakers banished to the island in 1291 • By the 14th century, glassmakers were allowed to wear swords and enjoyed immunity from prosecution. • By the end of the 16th century, three thousand of Murano island's seven thousand inhabitants were involved in some way in the glassmaking industry.
ORIGINS OF FLAT GLASS MANUFACTURE • Bulls Eye or Crown method • Blow…….split…….. spin
CYLINDER BLOWN MANUFACTURE • Blown as large cylinder 1825 • Swung over a pit • Laid on a table and split
CAST METHOD • The molten glass was poured onto a special table and rolled out flat. • After cooling, the plate glass was ground on large round tables by means of rotating cast iron discs • The result of this "plate pouring" process was flat glass with good optical transmission qualities. • When coated on one side with a reflective, low melting metal, high-quality mirrors could be produced.
FLAT DRAWN PROCESS • The Pittsburgh Process, invented by PPG in the 1920’s, involves drawing a continuous sheet of molten glass from a tank vertically up a four-story forming-and-cooling tower
ROLLED PLATE • Continuous production furnace • Passed through water cooled rollers • Cut into plates • Sent to another factory • Ground and polished • Continuous grinding & polishing.
MODERN GLASS MAKING • Window Glass
TYPICAL GLASS COMPOSITION BODY TINTED GLASS GREEN GLASS IRON OXIDE GREY GLASS COBALT OXIDE BRONZE GLASS SELENIUM OXIDE BLUE GLASS COBALT OXIDE MORE
MODERN GLASS MAKING • Raw materials mixed to give homogeneous mix • Fed into a regenerative furnace with “cullet” • Heated to 1550 centigrade • Stirred to ensure perfect mix • Cooled to about 11oo and poured onto molten tin • Gradually cooled to about 900 and into annealing lehr • Cooled to room temperature and cut and snapped
GLASSMAKING • Inside a Furnace
GLASSMAKING • Warehouse View
GLASSMAKING • Cold End of the Line
GLASSMAKING • Cold End of the Line
USES OF GLASS • Window Glass • Automotive Screens • Specialist Coated Products • Aircraft Glass
LIBYA IN THE NEWS • Lockerbie bombing • Dec 21st 1988 • Laminated windscreen
Specialised glasses • Pan Am drops from 30,000 feet over Lockerbie • Windscreen intact • Cannot use as an advert
SHORT VIDEO OF FLOAT GLASS • Pilkington short film • Shown as part of guided tours • Filmed in various locations
GLASS MAKING THROUGH THE AGES Any questions?