Solutions for Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing, 5e (published by Wiley) MPGroover 2012

12 GLASSWORKING
Review Questions
12.1 Glass is classified as a ceramic material; yet glass is different from the traditional and new ceramics.
What is the difference?
Answer. Glass is vitreous - it is in the glassy state, whereas traditional and new ceramics are, by and
large, polycrystalline materials.
12.2 What is the predominant chemical compound in almost all glass products?
Answer. Silica - SiO2.
12.3 What are the three basic steps in the glassworking sequence?
Answer. (1) raw materials preparation and melting, (2) shaping, and (3) heat treatment. Finishing
operations (e.g., grinding, polishing, etching) are performed on some glass products, if needed.
12.4 Melting furnaces for glassworking can be divided into four types. Name three of the four types.
Answer. The four types are: (1) pot furnaces, (2) day tanks, (3) continuous tank furnaces, and (4)
electric furnaces.
12.5 Describe the spinning process in glassworking.
Answer. Spinning in glassworking is similar to centrifugal casting in metalworking. A gob of
molten glass is dropped into a conical mold which spins, causing centrifugal force to spread the glass
upward onto the mold surface.
12.6 What is the main difference between the press-and-blow and the blow-and-blow shaping processes
in glassworking?
Answer. In the press-and-blow process, the initial forming step is pressing of the part, while the first
step in the blow-and-blow process is blowing.
12.7 There are several ways of shaping plate or sheet glass. Name and briefly describe one of them.
Answer. The methods described in this text are (1) rolling, in which the hot glass is squeezed
between opposing cylindrical rolls; and (2) the float process, in which the melted glass flows onto a
molten tin surface to achieve uniform thickness and smoothness.
12.8 Describe the Danner process.
Answer. In the Danner process, molten glass flows around a rotating hollow mandrel through which
air is blown while the glass is being drawn. The temperature of the air and its volumetric flow rate as
well as the drawing velocity determine the diameter and wall thickness of the tubular cross-section.
During hardening, the glass tube is supported by a series of rollers extending beyond the mandrel.
12.9 Two processes for forming glass fibers are discussed in the text. Name and briefly describe one of
them.
Answer. The two processes in the text are (1) drawing, in which fine glass fibers are pulled through
small orifices in a heated plate; and (2) centrifugal spraying, in which molten glass is forced to flow
through small orifices in a rapidly rotating bowl to form glass fibers.
12.10 What is the purpose of annealing in glassworking?
Answer. Annealing is performed on glass to remove internal stresses that result from shaping and
solidification.
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Solutions for Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing, 5e (published by Wiley) MPGroover 2012

12.11 Describe how a piece of glass is heat treated to produce tempered glass.
Answer. The glass is heated to a temperature above the annealing temperature and the surfaces are
then quenched by air jets to cool and harden them while the interior of the piece remains plastic; as
the interior cools and contracts, it puts the previously hardened surfaces in compression, which
strengthens the glass product.
12.12 Describe the type of material that is commonly used to make windshields for automobiles.
Answer. Laminated glass, in which two sheets of glass are laminated on either side of a polymer
sheet. This has good impact resistance and does not splinter when broken.
12.13 What are some of the design recommendations for glass parts?
Answer. The guidelines include the following: (1) Subject ceramic parts to compressive, not tensile
loads. (2) Ceramics are brittle, so avoid impact loading. (3) Use large radii on inside and outside
corners. (4) Screw threads should be course.

Excerpts from this work may be reproduced by instructors for distribution on a not-for-profit basis for testing or instructional purposes only to
students enrolled in courses for which the textbook has been adopted. Any other reproduction or translation of this work beyond that permitted
by Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act without the permission of the copyright owner is unlawful.
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