Toughened Glass: A Brief Understanding
Toughened glass, also called tempered glass, is a hard type of glass with increased durability and safety in resisting breakage due to pressure and changes in temperature. Many uses in industries have been enhanced through its strong nature since its invention.
- But how does toughened glass become toughened?
- What makes it so different from ordinary glass?
- And why is it the favorite of many applications?
Toughened or tempered glass is a safety glass. To make toughened glass, brand-new annealed (float) glass is made to rise uniformly through a furnace to temperatures greater than 600 degrees Celsius. It is then quickly cooled in the quenching chamber of the furnace.Toughened glass, or safety glass/tempered glass, is much more durable than float glass and considered Grade A safety glass. Float glass when broken might break into large dangerous sharp shards.
Places where safety is essential are the areas we advise to opt for toughened glass: doors, sidelights, bathroom windows, balustrades, and pool fencing. While toughened glass has the ability to withstand extreme temperatures and heavy blows, it could still very well break under certain conditions. In this section, we take a closer look at the characteristics of toughened glass, manufacturing processes, and applications, in a very simple yet elaborate way.
Features Of Toughened Glass
Toughened glass has numerous qualities that make it much better than usual glass. There are some examples:
- High strength and durability
Toughened glass can be five times stronger than normal glass Usage of heavy impact and sudden pressure changes will not break the glass easily.
- Thermal resistance
This type of glass can withstand high temperatures, which is essential when it is used in the environment of extreme hotness changes, such as ovens and facade of buildings.
- Shatter – Proof
They are called Shatter-Proof For safety, a person must not be able to see sharp-edged glass shards, which are a toughened form of glass that cuts into dull-edged pieces.
- Greats Scratch Resistance
Toughened glass is much harder to scratch, which makes it last longer in applications such as phones or tablet screens and tabletops.
- Weather Resistance
It does not matter if there are heavy rains, strong winds, or snow in the area; toughened glass never bends or twists under extreme weather conditions.
- Unique Class Products
Different finishes and treatments of toughened glass, such as heat soaking, polishing, beveling, and mittering, can be developed to suit a kaleidoscope of applications for industrial and architectural specifications.
- Custom Processing Options
Toughened glass products undergo a heat strengthening, heat soaking, polishing, water jet cutting, automated cutting, beveling, and mittering to provide premium quality solutions tailored for various applications.
How Toughened Glass Is Made ?
First lets see the steps in the process of the manufacturing of toughened glass . Take a look at the flowchart below;
How Toughened Glass Is Made: Explanation
Toughened glass entails multiple procedures expected to fortify its strength and durability. Here is everything you need to know about how toughened glass is made :
- Cutting and Shaping
Cut the glass to the required size and shape by automated cutting techniques to obtain preciseness. Water jet cutting or other additional processes may be required for some more complicated designs.
- Polishing and Beveling
After that, polishing and beveling are employed to highlight the glass edges or to beautify them. This process chips the edge and refines it to achieve a smoother look.
- Mittering
This method is angle cutting of the glass edges, mainly used for corner joints in architecture.
- Toughening Process
The glass is subjected to heat in the furnace at temperature levels of about 620-700°C or 1300-1500°C temperatures. Such a degree of heating softens the glass enough for the next act.
- Quenching
Immediately, this is followed by cooling of the glass through high-pressure air jets, which leads to a texting process where quenching, the outer surface cools quickly while the inner layers remain hot. In this case, since the layers close to the glass cool off gradually, in doing so they exert compressive stress onto the outer layers, thus assisting glass in making itself stronger and tougher.
- Heat Strengthening
It is moderately rare for glass to be supplied with heat-treatment slightly lower than full toughening; nevertheless, this provides glass with durability while retaining a certain degree of flexibility.
- Heat Soaking
It is in regard with heat soaking that the glass now gets further exposure after the heat treatment for the reason of purification from soluble impurities that may later account for spontaneous breakage, thus confounding reliability in structural applications.
- Final Inspection
Once it gets completely cooled, it’s finally assessed for scratches, measure of uneven thickness, and distortion before it goes on to join its many applications. Through this process, only common glass acquires the strength and toughness that is spectacular.
Applications Of Toughened Glass
Because of its strength, safety, and durability, toughened glass finds a place in a number of industries. Following are some of the major applications of toughened glass :
- Automotive Industry
Those panes and windshields in cars that are made of toughened glass can take impacts and are shatter-resistant.
- Architectural and Construction Sector
All those skyscrapers, glass doors, balconies and curtain walls are made to stand because toughened gives support as well as beauty.
- Electronics and Gadgets
Smartphone screens, tablets, and even TV screens utilize toughened glass to give protection against scratches and breakage owing to accidental drops.
- Furniture and Interior Design
To exude beauty and durability, modern glass tables, partitions, and shelves are implemented with toughened glass.
- Household Appliances
To withstand high temperature and daily usage, ovens, microwave doors, and refrigerator selves are made using toughened glass.
- Public Spaces and Transport
Public branches, like the bus stop and the subway metro stations as well, use the toughened glass since it’s great for security purposes, visibility, and maintenance ease.
Toughened glass has itself made a place in modern life with safety, reliability, and aesthetic appeal in various industries. Use from the highest skyscraper to smartphone screens in making everyday life safe and efficient.
Why Do You Prefer Us : The TPRS Glass Solutions ?
TPRS Glass Solutions is a reliably trusted partner for the same solutions for toughened glass: the best in this field. With expertise in toughened glass, heat strengthening, heat soaking, polishing, water jet cutting, automated cutting, beveling, and mittering, we assure the premium quality glass products needed for many applications.
Toughened glass products are meant to perform in extremely demanding environments–they have very high impact resistance, good thermal stability properties, and aesthetics for architectural, industrial, and commercial requirements. Whether you need custom-made toughened glass for construction, interior design, or electronics, we have the right solution for you.
Reach out to us today to learn more about our top-notch toughened glass solutions and how we can bring your vision into existence!
Check out our other blog to learn about the TPRS Toughened Glass
