What is glass tempering?
By heating the glass pane to a temperature of approximately 700 degrees Celsius with hot air, then we very quickly lower the air temperature and cool the glass - we obtain tempered glass.
Thanks to this, the micro structure of the glass pane is changed, which causes its mechanical strength to be several times higher than that of ordinary float glass. In this way, we produce a regular network in the form of silica crystals separated by small domains of the amorphous phase. Glass that has been subjected to the tempering process cannot be subjected to mechanical processing, except for sandblasting - i.e. removing the top layer of glass with fine sand. All machining, drilling and cutting should be performed before the hardening process. An additional effect of tempering is that the glass obtains features that increase safety. Tempered glass is characterized by high hardness (approx. 5-7 times greater than float glass) and is soft inside. As a result, the stresses that arise in the glass structure cause the glass to break down into small, unsharp pieces with blunt edges, which is necessary in the case of glass structures.
Technical data of ESG tempered glass:
- hardened at a temperature of approximately 700 degrees C, it is resistant to the temperature range: 200-300 C.
- bending strength 120N/mm2 and compressive strength 700-900N/mm2.
- wall strength - the breakage of one element does not cause the breakage of the next ones - they work independently.
- the most commonly used thicknesses are 4mm, 6mm, 8mm, 10mm, 12mm, less often 19mm.
What is lamination?
We laminate glass using a specialized furnace. It involves joining two or more glass panes using special PVB foils (transparent or matte, colored). The glass used can be ordinary or tempered. At least 2 foils are used for tempered. A good solution is to use 4 foils, which prevents frequent delamination of the glass when using 2 pieces.
The prepared package of two identical glass pieces, previously washed with demineralized water, enters a special jacket from which the air is sucked out. The glass is then heated in a furnace. After several dozen minutes, we obtain safety glass that can be used in construction to make:
- balustrades,
- canopies,
- glass floor,
- glass stairs,
- or doors etc.
A novelty is the possibility of making laminates with decorative foil, where a foil with a printed pattern or photo is placed between two panes. The design possibilities are almost endless. You can print a photo on special foil in an appropriate format (of course, the photo must be of good quality). Then the foil is placed in the laminate between two panes of glass.
Both tempered and glued glass are safe glass. Depending on the place and regulations, we can use different varieties. The use of such glass is intended to minimize the risk to users who use them.