The material of glass is extremely useful because of its transparency, versatility, and heat resiliency. Plus, it’s inexpensive to make and very recyclable. It’s also chemically inert, meaning that a glass container won’t react with other things that it’s filled with. For these reasons and more, glass is one of the most used and most resourceful materials out there.
What is glass made of?
Glass is a form of liquid sand. Different types of glass will slightly differ in their make up, but generally speaking, glass is a mixture of sand, other recycled glass, calcium carbonate, sodium carbonate, and a whole lot of heat.
Sand melts at the extremely high temperature of 3090 degrees F. When sand reaches its melting point it undergoes a complete transformation. The structure changes as it becomes amorphous—not quite a liquid and not quite a solid. This substance is very unique and creates a moldable material with which to make glass.
What is the process of making glass?
Making glass is a fairly straightforward process. In a commercial glass plant, sand is mixed with recycled glass, sodium carbonate, and calcium carbonate. These substances are then heated in a furnace. Once in a liquid state, it is poured into molds to shape, or poured on a flat surface to make sheets of glass.
Processes and exact ingredients of glass making will differ depending on the type of glass being made. For example, other chemicals are added to make color glass. Or boron oxide is added to make an oven-proof glass.
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