Borate glass

An old borax plant in Death Valley, California.

Borate glasses have a more complex action of alkali ions than silicate glasses.^[1] Borate glasses also have major differences in their optical properties.^[2]

The single largest use of boron compounds in the world (accounting for half of total global use) is the production of certain types of boron-treated glass fiber for insulating and structural fiberglass. ^[3] In these uses the boron may be present as borax or boron oxide, and adds to the structural strength of the glass as borosilicate, or is added as a fluxing agent to decrease the melting temperature of pure silica, which is difficult to extrude as fibers and work with in pure form, due to the high temperatures involved.

References

Glass science topics

Basics	Glass Glass transition Supercooling

Glass formulation	AgInSbTe Bioglass Borophosphosilicate glass Borosilicate glass Ceramic glaze Chalcogenide glass Cobalt glass Cranberry glass Crown glass Flint glass Fluorosilicate glass Fused quartz GeSbTe Gold ruby glass Lead glass Milk glass Phosphosilicate glass Photochromic lens glass Silicate glass Soda-lime glass Sodium hexametaphosphate Soluble glass Tellurite glass Ultra low expansion glass Uranium glass Vitreous enamel Wood's glass ZBLAN

Glass-ceramics	Bioactive glass CorningWare Glass-ceramic-to-metal seals Macor Zerodur

Glass preparation	Annealing Chemical vapor deposition Glass batch calculation Glass forming Glass melting Glass modeling Ion implantation Liquidus temperature Sol-gel technique Viscosity Vitrification

Optics	Achromat Dispersion Gradient-index optics Hydrogen darkening Optical amplifier Optical fiber Optical lens design Photochromic lens Photosensitive glass Refraction Transparent materials

Surface modification	Anti-reflective coating Chemically strengthened glass Corrosion Dealkalization DNA microarray Hydrogen darkening Insulated glazing Porous glass Self-cleaning glass Sol-gel technique Toughened glass

Diverse topics	Glass-coated wire Safety glass Glass databases Glass electrode Glass fiber reinforced concrete Glass ionomer cement Glass microspheres Glass-reinforced plastic Glass-to-metal seal Porous glass Prince Rupert's Drops Radioactive waste vitrification Windshield

Glass production techniques

Commercial techniques	Float glass process Blowing and pressing (containers) Extrusion / Drawing (fibers, glasswool) Drawing (optical fibers) Precision glass moulding Overflow downdraw method Pressing Casting Cutting Flame polishing Chemical polishing Diamond turning Rolling

Artistic and historic techniques	Beadmaking Blowing Blown plate Broad sheet Caneworking Crown glass Cylinder blown sheet Engraving Etching Fourcault process Fusing Lampworking Machine drawn cylinder sheet Millefiori Polished plate Slumping Stained glass fusing Stained glass production

Natural processes	Radiative processes Opal formation Sea glass Shock metamorphic glasses/Impactite Vitrified sand Volcanic glasses

See also	Glossary of glass art terms Glass recycling

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