Pilkington Process

MixingRaw

Materials

Heating

Float Bath

Annealing

Coating

Inspection

Cutting

-Also known as the float glass process-Only way to manufacture flat glass, plate glass or sheet glass for windows, glass doors, transparent walls, and windshields-Still used to this day-Composed of six stages

• Main ingredients are mixed into ‘the batch’; sand, lime, dolomite, soda, and sulfate• Broken-down glass is also added• Heated up to 1600 degrees Celsius• Controlled by computer

- Glass leaves the furnace at 1100 degrees Celsius onto molten tin

- Glass flattens out- Top rollers manage the

thickness of the glass

- Removes the stress in the glass from the previous process- Glass passes through the annealing lehr and is cooled from 600 degrees Celsius to room temperature

- The glass is coated with a micron-thick metallic layer-This layer adds special properties to the glass, such as reflecting heat

- The ribbon then passes through a on-line inspection.

- Flaws imply wastage.

- Diamond wheels cut away any flaws (bubbles, etc.) ad selvedge (stressed edges)

- Ribbon is cut as per customer’s requirement by computer