TC18: Glass Melting

The title of TC18 recently changed from “Properties of Glass Forming Melts” into “Glass Melting”. Its members stimulate co-operation between different Technical Committees operating within the cluster “Glass Production” and strives for further actions within the 4 main topics identified and described during the 2008-BRIG expert meeting “Innovative Glass Melting for the year 2020”.

MAIN GOALS OF TC18

TC18 promotes both fundamental and applied research on phenomena connected to glass melting processes. It supports co-operation among technical committees involved in the cluster Glass Production.

PROJECTS

Batch Melting Kinetics

Proposed work description

The goal of the project is to propose and test simple laboratory procedure to evaluate melting kinetics of glass batches. In the initial stage of the project, the suitable test procedure was discussed and the experimental setup was proposed. Laboratory melts will be run in a crucible with approximately 200 grams of batch.

Two to three types of glasses will be selected for the study – E-glass, soda-lime-silica (container glass) and borosilicate (Pyrex type). Raw materials for selected glass compositions were be delivered by Johns Manville Slovakia, O-I Manufacturing Czech Republic and Kavalierglass Czech Republic. In the case of fiber glass the comparison of colemanite and borax pentahydrate as boron source will be focused. Individual raw materials will be distributed to RRT participants, who will prepare batch mixtures and perform laboratory melting test.

Deliverables

Simple laboratory test procedure, which is be able to distinguish different batch melting kinetics dependent on batch composition, types of raw materials, batch pre-treatment (wetting, type of mixing, pelletizing), grain sizes of batch components and should give quantitative results (e.g. Batch Free Time at certain temperature).

Project Schedule

Distribution of batch material samples will take place in January - June 2018. Melting laboratory tests will be carried out before the end of 2018. The evaluation of RRT results is planned at the TC18 meeting during ICG Congress 2019 in Boston, USA.

PLANS FOR YEAR 2018

1. TC18 meeting during ESG conference in Saint Malo, France, 9-13 July 2018.

2. Batch Melting Kinetics Project

The launch of the Round Robin Test on the Determination of Batch Free Time.