Is it possible to temper glass, and how is this product characterized?

Recently there has been a steady increase in the use of glass products in the design of premises, including in the case of external glazing. The current production technology allows you to get a clean glass of absolutely any shape and size. However beautiful as it may be, this does not make it the most protected from mechanical damage. In fact, when a glass falls for at least a few centimeters, it is at first covered with small cracks, and then it immediately crumbles. But engineers have taken this moment into account, and therefore now in almost all facade design of premises a special tempered type of glass is used. Why is it so popular, and what are its characteristics?

What is it?

According to GOST, tempered glass is a material that, during production, heats up to a temperature of 650-700 degrees Celsius and then abruptly cools down to minimum values. Thus, due to the difference in heating, the heat treatment process takes place, that is, quenching. As a rule, at the output of such material is characterized by high reliability and impact resistance. Specialists have calculated that this type of tempered glass is 4 times stronger than that called ordinary steel. In addition, it is worth paying attention to the safety of its use. The fragments of this material have smaller cutting properties. At the same time, ordinary steelite, when falling, splits into hundreds of small grains of glass that dig into the skin so quickly that the pain from their presence under the skin only appears on the following days. Shards of tempered glass are distinguished by more blunt edges, which prevents the risk of serious injury to humans.

Dimensions

The production of tempered glass is carried out on special technical equipment, while the dimensions of the obtained material can be as follows:

1. Length and width - from 200 to 3600 millimeters;
2. Thickness - from 4 to 19 millimeters.

Before tempering the glass, the masters select the necessary dimensions and, if possible, cut it to the desired shape. Why can not it be processed after quenching? The fact is that the surface of this material, along with high strength, does not make it possible to make any changes in its shape. And this means that cutting and drilling the surface of the hardened part simply does not make sense. It is worth noting that you can only temper glass with sophisticated technical equipment. Just heat a piece of glass on the stove and quickly drop it into cold water you will not succeed. Such a material simply crumbles into small fragments or at best just crackles. Therefore, if you want to temper glass, contact this request to specialized companies that provide similar services.

Technical features

The temperature range of operation of such material is from -150 to +300 degrees Celsius. And this despite the fact that the stalinite can withstand a temperature difference of only 40 degrees. In this regard, an increasing number of construction companies are wondering "how and where to temper glass for outdoor glazing?"