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Brittleness and speed: a new way of making glass
Glass is a rather painstaking material to work with. For example, plastic is more pliable and unpretentious. Therefore, manufacturers often choose it to create a number of products. But soon the situation will change dramatically, thanks to the development of scientists from the University of Freiburg (Germany). A group of chemists has come up with a method of casting glass under intense pressure, which can be used to quickly obtain complex and fragile glass products. The new technique is called Glassomer.
The Glassomer technological process consists of several stages. In a special injection molding machine, polymer granules with quartz glass particles are placed. There they are melted and poured into a prepared form. When the mass has cooled and solidified, it is reheated to a temperature of 600 ºC. As a result, the polymer burns out, leaving only connected glass particles. The third time, the workpiece is heated even more - up to 1300 degrees. The bonded glass particles undergo a process known as “sintering”. As a result, pure quartz glass is formed.
“When heated, the particles slowly move from one state to another. But the shape of the glass remains the same, it is only compressed in all directions by 15%, ”said Frederic Kotz, who was involved in the study.
Thanks to the new method, it is possible to pour a large number of technically complex glass items without the need to heat the temperature to the standard 2000 ºC. An innovative technique developed by a German team will greatly simplify the work of production. In addition, the polymer granules washed out of the glass are recyclable.
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The Glassomer technological process consists of several stages. In a special injection molding machine, polymer granules with quartz glass particles are placed. There they are melted and poured into a prepared form. When the mass has cooled and solidified, it is reheated to a temperature of 600 ºC. As a result, the polymer burns out, leaving only connected glass particles. The third time, the workpiece is heated even more - up to 1300 degrees. The bonded glass particles undergo a process known as “sintering”. As a result, pure quartz glass is formed.
“When heated, the particles slowly move from one state to another. But the shape of the glass remains the same, it is only compressed in all directions by 15%, ”said Frederic Kotz, who was involved in the study.
Thanks to the new method, it is possible to pour a large number of technically complex glass items without the need to heat the temperature to the standard 2000 ºC. An innovative technique developed by a German team will greatly simplify the work of production. In addition, the polymer granules washed out of the glass are recyclable.
Read also: Assistant robot: the future is near