The Use Of Borates In Glass Melting

Commercial use of borates in glasses is surveyed. Structural and chemical differences between silica and borates are presented. Technical benefits of boron are reviewed for several major industrial borosilicate glasses and the major borate raw materials are discussed. An empirical study of possible reactions in E-glass is used to demonstrate the importance of boron to the earliest liquid phases formed in glass melting. The opportunities to improve glass melting through batch preparation and chemistry are presented.