INVESTIGATING GLASS

Practical 1

Donné van Heerden

217028986
19 February 2019
Aims

The aim of the experiment was to identify the differences between boron and silicon-based
glass by assessing their physical properties. Boron glass was seen to be stronger as well as
more resistant to degradation. The waters of hydration were burned off using a Bunsen
burner, which results in the formation of glass. Silicon glass was seen to require a higher
temperature to form. Different organic salts were added to the different borax and silicate
mixtures that resulted in coloured glass, whereby their physical properties were observed.

Introduction

Glasses are ceramic materials that are defined mainly by their atomic structure. A glass is a
hardened material that has become rigid without crystallising, which makes it amorphous.

Glasses have a very disordered amorphous structure unlike the ordered crystalline structure
that most other ceramics have. This results in glass having different properties when
compared to other crystalline ceramics. [5]

The most popular glasses are silicate glasses, which is formed from silica, SiO2. Glass can
also me made from pure silica, called fused silica. Two special glasses based on silica are
soda-lime glass (70SiO2.10CaO.15Na2O), which is used in bottles and windows, and
borosilicate glass (80SiO2.15B2O3.5Na2O), which is used in cooking and chemical glassware.

Borate glass has a more complex action of alkali ions when compared to silicon glass. Borate
glass also differs in their optical properties. [4] The biggest use of boron compounds is to
produce specific types of boron-treated glass fiber which is used for insulating and structural
fiberglass. Boron may be present as borax or boron oxide, as it adds to the structural strength
of the glass as borosilicate, or it can be used as a fluxing agent, decreasing the melting
temperate of pure silica. This in return is hard to extrude as fibers and work in pure form, due
to the high temperatures. [3]

An oxide’s ability to form glass upon cooling is dependant on the structural relationship
between the cations and the oxygen atom of the oxide. A tetrahedral network is formed when
the cations bind with the oxygen atoms, resulting in a glass structure.

Oxides that form glasses are called network formers and examples of these oxides include
SiO2, B2O3, GeO2, and P2O5. [2]
Some other oxides can be used to substitute Si atoms in the tetrahedral structure. These
oxides then act as a stabiliser in the network and are known as intermediates. The
intermediates lower the melting point as well as the viscosity of the glass, thus permitting it
to be worked at lower temperatures. Examples of the intermediates include TiO2, ZnO, PbO,
and Al2O3. [5]
Procedure

The experimental procedure was adapted from the APCH312 Practical Manual. [1] All
mixtures were prepared for students before initiation of the experiment. The experiment was
conducted as follows:

Part A: Boron glass

A small loop was made un nichrome wire and heated until red hot. It was then dipped in
borax [1] and heated again until a clear glass drop was seen. The drop was allowed to cool,
where after its properties were observed and it was placed in a beaker containing water to test
for dissolution.

This procedure was repeated with a 1.6 g boric acid and 0.4 g sodium borate mixture [2], as
well as a 1.0 g red lead oxide and 1.0 g boric acid mixture [3].

Part B: Silicon glass

The procedure from Part A was repeated with 1.30 g silicon dioxide, 0,70 g sodium
carbonate, 0.15 g calcium oxide and 0.06 g aluminium oxide mixture [4], as well as a 0.80 g
silicon dioxide, 0.64 g sodium carbonate, 0.28 g boric acid, 0.02 g aluminium oxide, and 0.01
g potassium carbonate mixture [5].

Part C: Coloured glass

The procedure from Part A was used again and manganese oxide, copper chloride and iron
(III) chloride were individually added to all 5 mixtures and the colour of the glass drop was
observed.
Results
Parts A (Boron glass) and B (Silicon glass):
Boron glass
Formation time Colour Hardness Solubility
1 About 20 seconds Clear with slight Medium Insoluble
greenish tinge
2 About 25 seconds Completely clear Very hard Insoluble
3 Clear after about 5 Green flame. Medium Insoluble
seconds but white Fluctuates between
upon removal from white when it is out
the flame. of the flame and
Continued for about clear in flame
1 minute
Silicon glass
Formation time Colour Hardness Solubility
4 Had difficulty Orange flame. Low /brittle Soluble after about
sticking to the Charred quickly. 15 minutes
metal. Glass formed Noticeably clear
after 10 seconds.
5 Had difficulty Orange flame. Low /brittle Soluble after about
sticking to the Charred quickly. 25 minutes
metal. Glass formed Noticeably clear
after 10 seconds.

Table 1: Physical observations of clear glass formation

Part C: Coloured glass

Manganese oxide
Formation time Colour Hardness Solubility
1 About 10 seconds Orange flame - Medium Insoluble
black glass
2 About 10 seconds Orange/violet flame Very Insoluble
- grey glass
3 About 15 seconds Green flame with Medium Insoluble
sparks - grey glass
4 About 20 seconds Orange flame with Low /brittle Insoluble
sparks - grey glass
5 About 30 seconds Orange flame - Low /brittle Insoluble
grey/black glass

Table 2: Physical properties of mixtures when combined with manganese oxide

Iron (III) chloride

Formation time Colour Hardness Solubility
1 About 10 seconds Yellow/orange Medium hardness Insoluble
flame with sparks;
black glass
2 About 10 seconds Yellow/orange Very hard Insoluble
flame with sparks -
smooth black glass
3 About 15 seconds Green/blue flame - Medium Insoluble
maroon glass
4 About 30 seconds Orange flame, Low /brittle Insoluble
charred
immediately;
discernibly black
5 About 20 seconds Orange flame, Low /brittle Insoluble
charred immediate -
dark grey glass

Table 3: Physical properties of mixtures when combined with iron (III) chloride

Copper chloride
Formation time Colour Hardness Solubility
1 About 10 seconds Dark green glass Medium Insoluble
2 About 5 seconds Dark green glass Very hard Insoluble
3 About 10 seconds Opaque green glass Medium Insoluble
4 About 15 seconds Green flame; Low /brittle Insoluble
charred
immediately - dark
green glass
5 About 20 seconds Green flame; Low /brittle Insoluble
charred
immediately - dark
green glass

Table 4: Physical properties of mixtures when combined with copper chloride

Discussion

The boron glass was found to be physically better than the silicon glass when they are
compared, and the data collected is considered. Boron glass was seen to have a higher
mechanical strength and it was found to be more insoluble than the silicon glass, which was
brittle and dissolved after about 15 minutes after it was immersed in water. The silicon glass
also charred easily (indicating that at high temperature, its resistance is lower), and it was
difficult to get enough of the mixture on the nichrome wire in order for it to form a glass
drop.

The coloured glass was found to have similar properties to the clear glass, with only a
difference in its solubility and how it looks. None of the coloured glass drops dissolved after
30 minutes. The colour of the flames changed with each organic salt that was added to the
mixture. The iron (III) chloride was wet and it took longer for glass to be formed on the
nichrome wire. Both compound 4 and 5 resulted in brittle glass, which charred easily and
made it difficult to observe.

Questions:

1. What are the properties of the boron glass that you have made? How is it different to
window glass?

The boron glass that was made indicated that it is stronger and harder than silica based
soda-lime glass, or window glass. Besides their higher physical strength, borax based
glass have a bigger resistance to higher temperatures (as a result of its lower coefficient of
thermal expansion) as well as acid erosion, which makes it able to withstand acid rain and
more suitable for laboratory work. [7]

2. What are the favourable properties of glass? How are these exploited in commercial
applications of glass?

Due to glass’ non-crystalline structure, it has many unique characteristics that makes it
more favourable. It is very strong and hard, and resistant to temperature (having a
transformation temperature of 500℃ and upwards), breakage and compression, as well as
corrosion. Glass is quite versatile in production because it can be shaped. The
 transparency of glass is a very beneficial property of practical and aesthetic application. It
is used in many industries due to these properties, including science (chemical and
thermal analysis), engineering (malleability), food technology, entertainment, agriculture
etc. Glass can be recycled and it is easy to clean and preserve. [8]

3. What properties of glass are potentially unfavourable? How could the potential problems
that could be caused by these unfavourable properties be overcome?

Upon impact, glass breaks easily. This results in it shattering and becoming dangerous to
handle (one can get cut or stabbed by sharp shards of broken glass). Glass also shatters
when there is a rapid exposure to heat and pressure. To prevent this from happening,
stronger forms of reinforced glass are being produced, but this is a costly procedure.
Glass is very expensive to produce due to high temperatures being required for its
formation.
[8]

4. Why does glass get soft and not melt suddenly to form a liquid?

Due to the amorphous arrangement of atoms found in glass, it has a glass transition
temperature (Tg) rather than an immediate melting point, below this point the material is
in solid phase, and above this point it is first rubbery and then liquid. The stage at which
the material is between solid and liquid is seen as a super cooled liquid, where glass has a
soft nature. [1]
 Diagram 1: Phase diagram of glass illustrating Tg < Tm [8]

5. Report on the inorganic salt supplied to you and the colour of the glass obtained.

The colours of the glasses obtained can be found in the Results section. The inorganic
salts used include manganese oxide, iron (III) chloride, and copper chloride. These were
black, red, and green respectively.

6. Apart from the aesthetic appeal, what practical reasons necessitate the colouring of glass?

Besides architectural aesthetics, coloured glass is beneficial for a variety of reasons.

These reasons include privacy, preventing degradation of compounds that are stored in
coloured glass bottles as well as UV filtering (sunlight is filtered through sunglasses
preventing health problems and deteriorating eyesight). [6]

Conclusion

The aim of the experiment was to identify the differences between boron and silicon-based
glass by assessing their physical properties. Boron glass was seen to be stronger as well as
more resistant to degradation. Silicon glass was seen to require a higher temperature to form.
Different organic salts were added to the different borax and silicate mixtures that resulted in
coloured glass, whereby their physical properties were observed.
References
1. Pruessner, Dr K. 2019. In Materials, 7, 8. Durban: UKZN.

2. Shackelford, James F.; Doremus, Robert H. (2008). Ceramic and Glass Materials:
Structure, Properties and Processing. Springer. p. 158. from the original on 25
February 2019
3. Bourhis, Eric Le (2007). Glass: Mechanics and Technology. Wiley-VCH. p. 74. from
the original on 25 February 2019
4. S. Murugavel and B. Roling, “Ion transport mechanism in borate glasses: influence of
network structure on non-Arrhenius conductivity,” Physical Review B, vol. 76,
Article ID 180202, 4 pages, 2007. from the original on 25 February 2019

5. 2013. “UNSW Sydney.” School of Materials Science and Engineering. 12 December.

Accessed February 25, 2019. http://www.materials.unsw.edu.au/tutorials/online-
tutorials/1-atomic-structure.

6. Oxley, John (1994). Stained glass in South Africa. William Waterman Publications.
from the original on 25 February 2019
7. Weissler, G. L. (1979). Vacuum Physics and Technology (2 ed.). Academic Press.
p.  315. from the original on 24 February 2019

8. “Glass Property.” Science Direct. Accessed February 25, 2019.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/materials-science/glass-property.