Most of the glass used in our modern building and construction industry is float or sheet glass. It is used for exterior windows and cladding panels, and in the interiors, for partitions and wall cladding.
Since it is optically clear, almost distortion and defect free, it allows in maximum light into our interior spaces, which is not only an energy-saving device, but allows us to enjoy external views and serves to 'open' up otherwise enclosed spaces as well. Glass is able to refract, reflect, and transmit light without scattering it.
Let me get into the types of treatments that adapt standard glass for use according to various purposes and in a variety of industries. The sheets used in building facades is usually tempered or laminated and is classified as safety glass.
Since it is optically clear, almost distortion and defect free, it allows in maximum light into our interior spaces, which is not only an energy-saving device, but allows us to enjoy external views and serves to 'open' up otherwise enclosed spaces as well. Glass is able to refract, reflect, and transmit light without scattering it.
Let me get into the types of treatments that adapt standard glass for use according to various purposes and in a variety of industries. The sheets used in building facades is usually tempered or laminated and is classified as safety glass.
When it is heated using carefully controlled processes it can produce tempered, toughened, textured or laminated glass. All of these treatments are designed to cater to a variety of industry needs.
Tempered or Toughened glass process increases by 10 times the strength compared with normal glass. The process creates balanced internal stresses so that should it be broken it crumbles into small granular chunks instead of splintering into sharp jagged shards and which are less likely to cause injury. As a result this type is used in the automotive industry for passenger car windows; in the building industry as shower doors, glass doors, tables; and in the refrigerator industry as trays. It is also used as a part to make bulletproof glass; in diving masks, and for making plates and cookware.
Laminated glass is made when two or more sheets are sandwiched together using a special PVB film, creating another type of safety glass that holds together when shattered. The glass layers are held together by the PVB interlayer, placed in between the two or more sheets. The interlayer keeps the glass bonded even when broken, and its high strength prevents the sheets from breaking up into large sharp pieces, producing a characteristic "spider web" cracking pattern. Laminated glass is used to glaze skylights and to make automobile windshields. In hurricane and typhoon prone areas it is also the preferred type for exterior cladding and windows. The interlayer also makes the glass more sound proof, and also blocks out UV rays.
Textured glass is made primarily for aesthetic uses for interior design purposes. This is made by placing the flat sheet on a mould, then gradually heating it until it softens and takes on the desired texture.
Bent or slumped glass takes the process described above a step further whereby the result is curved or 'fishbowl' shape. Such shaped types are needed for rounded installations such as the fishbowl curved walkway we installed at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport Mini Rainforest Jungle Boardwalk, in the Satellite Building.
Article Source: Ashley J John
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