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Oregon still wrestles with art glass question

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Oregon still wrestles with art glass question

Oregon still wrestles with art glass question

The State of Oregon is nearing a decision on final rules for the production of colored art glass. The state’s major producers came under closer scrutiny after regulators discovered higher-than-acceptable emissions of toxic metals from their operations.

Art glass producers under regulatory microscope

The state’s largest producers of colored glass and colored glass supplies have installed filters to capture chromium, arsenic, cadmium and other toxic heavy metals. Smaller producers are asking the State of Oregon to exempt them from the filtration requirements. They’re seeking to apply regulations only to producers that generate more than 10 tons of colored glass per year.

The State of Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has been monitoring the companies’ reduced emissions since it put temporary restrictions in place earlier this year. According to the state, its testing revealed that even at the reduced production levels, processed chromium still poses a major problem.

Glass producers melt trivalent chromium in a furnace as part of the colored glass making process. By itself, trivalent chromium does not pose a significant health hazard. After smelting, however, chromium that isn’t trapped the glass emerges as hexavalent chromium, a known carcinogen. Even worse, according to the state, the filtration systems currently in use by the glass manufacturers capture only two-thirds of the carcinogenic chromium emissions. The rest is released into the surrounding air.

The DEQ has temporarily prohibited the glassmakers from using any chromium in their glassmaking processes. Chromium is a standard additive in making green glass. It can also be used to make black glass. Chromium is also mixed with other metals, including tin oxide and arsenic, to make emerald green.

The problem isn’t a small one, and it isn’t limited strictly to artistic glass. Green glass is commonly used in food containers. While ordinary soda lime glass has a greenish tint, that coloration comes from iron oxide. Darker green containers – such as those used for storing wine and oil – would also be affected by the ban.

Arsenic, when combined with other metal oxides, is used to create imitation porcelain. Cadmium, which is toxic by itself, is used to create intense yellow glass and various glazes. When it is combined with other additives, like sulphur and selenium, it produces deep colors that range from orange to red.

The question of emissions in Oregon has spurred a larger debate, and has prompted the US EPA to examine glass factory emissions more closely. Glassprimer™ glass paint offers an option for creating colored glass. Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specially engineered glass coating that is applied directly to the glass surface. It can be tinted to match the paint palette of any major paint manufacturer and makes a permanent bond to the glass surface. Once cured, it will not chip, fade or peel, and performs well, even in harsh environments.

For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Nancy McClure, via FreeImages.com

Antimicrobial glass market is growing

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Antimicrobial glass market is growing

Antimicrobial glass market is growing

If you haven’t heard of antimicrobial glass, you’re not alone, but Corning is cornering the market on it. Glass has a number of hygienic properties, not the least of which is that it doesn’t absorb or harbor bacteria. Bacteria can certainly live on the surface of the glass, but unlike porous surfaces, a little “spray and wipe” removes the growth.

Antibacterial glass combats germs on mobile devices

That makes glass an ideal surface for places where a high degree of hygiene is required – like kitchens and bathrooms. But other places may also require a high degree of hygiene. Phones, tablets and other mobile devices outfitted with touch screens get handled a lot. The more hands that handle them, the more likely it is that germs can be passed from person to person.

Enter Corning. Corning’s Gorilla Glass is the go-to choice for mobile devices and high-use touch screens, so it makes sense to find ways to keep Gorilla Glass “clean” from a microbial perspective. In 2014, Corning introduced antimicrobial Gorilla Glass – a version of the company’s super-tough flagship that is coated with ionic silver.

Thanks to silver’s natural “killer instinct,” touch screens that sport the coating are naturally toxic to microbes and germs that might otherwise lie in wait on unprotected glass surfaces. Scientists have long known about silver’s anti-microbial properties. According to the company, antimicrobial Gorilla Glass will put the hurt on hapless algae, mold, mildew, fungi, and bacteria that find their way to a silver-coated touch screen.

The standard approach to cleaning up a grubby touch screen is a liquid cleaner or foam that must be applied periodically. The cleaner kills the unwanted biotics that have been deposited on the screen, but the cleaners don’t persist, so a clean screen will get loaded up again with a veritable living zoo during use. In contrast, the antimicrobial Gorilla Glass is always toxic to living crud, so it works all the time.

Demand for smartphones is expected to be a major driver for the sales of antibacterial glass. Glass is also becoming a preferred surface in decorating for its hygienic properties. If you’d like some inspiration for using glass in your home or commercial space, please check out the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store.

Photo Credit: AJC1, via Flickr.com

Glass data storage preserves data indefinitely

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Glass data storage preserves data indefinitely

Glass data storage preserves data indefinitely

If you know anything about glass, you know that glass lasts forever. It may break, but it will always be glass. It doesn’t deteriorate like organic materials do. A bottle in the landfill today will still be a bottle in the landfill 2,000 years from now. So glass data storage makes a lot of sense.

Glass data storage could preserve all of human history

Researchers at the University of Southampton have created a new way of storing digital data using the nanostructure of glass. The glass data storage process uses a technique known as 5-dimensional data storage, which was first described just three years ago.

A 1-inch disk can store about 350 terabytes of data with no degradation over the disk’s estimated 13.8 billion year lifespan. The disk can also stand up to some downright inhospitable temperatures, retaining the data intact at temperatures of up to 375° F.

The system takes advantage of a much richer data encoding scheme to preserve a higher volume of data in a smaller space. Unlike traditional binary data encoding schemes that can only record one of two states, the 5-dimensional encoding scheme can record five states on tiny structures inside the glass disks known as nanogratings. The nanogratings can encode information using their orientation, refraction, and its location in space on the x, y, and z axes, providing much more “space” for information storage.

Glass is an attractive medium because it is stable in a wide variety of environments. It does not warp or change, nor does it break down or interact with other chemicals in the atmosphere. UV radiation does not affect the glass medium, either.

The data is written to the glass disk by special lasers that aren’t likely to be commercialized very soon, but reading devices could be made relatively inexpensively. Hitachi is also working on a glass data storage system, and liquid data storage is also in the works.

At GlassPaint.com, we’re big fans of the nanoproperties of glass. Glassprimer™ glass paint is specially designed to interact with the nanosurface of glass to create permanent bonds. When you work with Glassprimer™ glass paint, you can be certain that you’ll get outstanding coverage, and a tough, UV-resistant surface for your glass projects. For glass inspiration, please check out the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: University of Southampton

Iconic Glass structures – 30 St Mary Axe

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Iconic Glass structures - 30 St Mary Axe

Iconic Glass structures – 30 St Mary Axe

Another entry in our series of Iconic Glass Structures is 30 St. Mary Axe in London. This 41-story commercial building is located in the financial district. Designed by architect Norman Foster and built by Skanska, the building was opened in 2004 on the site of two former buildings that were razed after being badly damaged by an IRA bomb. The building was originally designed for insurance firm Swiss Re, but today it serves a number of diverse tenants.

30 St. Mary Axe, named after the building’s address, is informally known as The Gherkin because of its distinctive shape. The building, which has a circular floor plan, tapers as it rises, and appears to come to a point. The building’s curved appearance is deceptive. The glass panels on the outside are all flat, with a single exception at building’s top. It is extremely energy efficient. Its unique design provides natural ventilation and natural lighting, and incorporates passive solar heat in the winter.

30 St. Mary Axe has won numerous architectural awards and quickly became an iconic landmark in London. The building was sold in 2014 to its current owners for 700 million pounds, making it the most expensive commercial property in London. A number of highly visible clients lease space in the building. In addition, the building provides space for retailers and restaurants.

30 St. Mary Axe has more than 150,000 square feet of office and retail space. Unlike many commercial designs, 30 St. Mary Axe does not rely on central columns for internal support. This allows the office spaces to incorporate open floor plans. The 40th floor of the building hosts a bar with 360° views of the city.

With all tall buildings, wind can cause them to sway. To control sway, many buildings employ braces or dampers to counteract forces generated by the wind. The design of 30 St. Mary Axe makes it sufficiently stiff to resist wind-induced sway, so the building does not have any additional bracing or dampers to control wind movement.

If you’re looking for inspiration for your next glass project, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Aurelien Guichard , via Flickr.com

Metallic glass increases light transmission

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Metallic glass increases light transmission

Metallic glass increases light transmission

Researchers at the University of British Columbia have created metal-coated glass that increases light transmission by as much as 10% compared to traditional window glass. Although glass is transparent, metallic inclusions allow more light to flow through the treated glass.

Metallic glass means conductive glass

In addition to increasing light transmission, the metallic inclusions also make the glass conductive. Ordinary glass is not just non-conductive; it’s used as an insulator in a variety of applications. Making glass conductive opens up some new possibilities for energy conservation, including the creation of “programmable” windows that can either reflect or absorb heat, based on the needs of the occupants.

Using windows to control heat gain or loss is especially interesting in Canada, where 70% of the country’s energy usage is devoted to maintaining the temperature in buildings. The experimental glass was created using a vacuum deposition technique, and added a metallic layer just a few nanometers thick.

You can use Glassprimer™ glass paint to help control heat gain and loss in building interiors. Ordinary glass allows UV-radiation to pass through it virtually unimpeded. In the winter, any additional heat is welcome, but often the angle of the winter sun doesn’t lend itself to heat gain via glass. On the other hand, you can also use coatings on the glass to help retain heat during the winter.

Glassprimer™ glass paint allows natural light to penetrate the glass, but provides exceptional UV resistance. Glass coated with Glassprimer™ glass paint will resist solar heat gain, and can also help prevent heat loss at night and during the winter months.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is economical as well. You can apply Glassprimer™ glass paint and achieve complete coverage for a cost of about $1.00 per square foot. Because Glassprimer™ glass paint makes a permanent bond with the glass, it will not chip, fade or delaminate, even in direct sunlight.

No one knows how well “smart” windows will work, or even if they’re practical, but we do know that Glassprimer™ glass paint offers a practical, affordable solution for limiting heat gain and loss. If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Drew Mackie, via Flickr.com

Wired Glass: Safe or not?

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Wired Glass: Safe or not?

Wired Glass: Safe or not?

You’ve seen wired glass. It’s used in doors and windows, and has an open wire mesh built into it. Many people assume that it’s safety glass, but it’s not. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, traditional wired glass doesn’t meet the organization’s glass safety impact standard.

Wired glass isn’t safety glass

In the late 1970’s, the CPSC determined that wired glass posed a serious danger and imposed size restrictions on its use. The size restrictions recognized that the glass had a very limited ability to survive impact stresses. The glass, which is weaker than safety glass, wasn’t banned outright because at the time the rule was made, wired glass was the only fire-rated glass product on the market. Because of this, wired glass was granted a compliance exemption for impact strength, specifically for academic and athletic applications.

By the early 2000’s, new safety glass had become widely available, and traditional wired glass lost its impact strength exemption. Any replacement glass in these locations had to meet the new strength requirements, and glass used in athletic environments had to meet an even more stringent safety standard. Traditional wired glass can be used as door lights, as long as it does not exceed the maximum size limits allowed by the CPSC standard.

The debate about wired glass is not about its relative safety in a fire. Wired glass – especially traditional wired glass – is weaker than regular glass and was installed liberally in schools, largely for its fire rating. Unfortunately, wired glass is responsible for more than 2,500 injuries annually in schools alone. Most injuries occur when a child accidentally impacts the window and the glass breaks.

School building codes do not permit the installation of traditional wired glass in certain areas, and limits the permissible size of wired glass windows in other locations. At the same time, building codes do not require the glass to be removed, either. Generally speaking, insurers and building inspectors recommend that wired glass be removed from areas where impacts are possible or likely.

Alternatives to wired glass exist, including a wired glass that incorporates a safety film. The film improves the impact resistance of glass and reduces the potential for serious injury in the event of a catastrophic impact. Other fire rated options that are more aesthetically pleasing are also available.

At GlassPaint.com, we can’t offer an improved safety rating, but we can definitely improve the aesthetics of glass. Glassprimer™ glass paint is specially engineered to bond to the surface of glass. Once cured, Glassprimer™ glass paint is permanent, and resists UV light damage, chipping, peeling and fading. We can also match any palette from any major paint manufacturer. If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Frank Servayge , via Flickr.com

Glasses can correct color blindness

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Glasses can correct color blindness

Glasses can correct color blindness

Color blindness is a common vision deficiency that affects about 8% of men and 0.5% of women. The most common type of “color blindess” is red-green color blindness. Affected individuals cannot distinguish red from green. A scientist who was trying to develop protective eyewear for surgeons has developed a pair of glasses that can correct red-green color blindness.

Glasses funded by NIH

Don McPherson, a researcher at Alfred University, was trying to develop eyewear that could protect physicians’ eyes during laser surgery. McPherson was playing a game of Ultimate Frisbee with a friend, and let him try the glasses on. The friend happened to be color blind – a condition that McPherson doesn’t suffer from. McPherson’s friend reported that his color vision changed when he wore the glasses.

McPherson applied for funding from the National Institutes of Health to help perfect the design of the glasses. He teamed up with a computer scientist to refine the design. In 2010, the pair formed a company called EnChroma, which sells the corrective lenses for $269-$349 per pair. The glasses don’t offer a permanent correction for the condition. Color blindness is a genetic deficiency and could only be “cured” with an effective gene therapy. None currently exist, but at least one promising treatment is seeking permission to conduct human trials.

EnChroma’s glasses aren’t the only eyewear available to correct color blindness. Several other companies offer color correction lenses. A Maryland optometrist offers both contact lenses and glasses that can allow the wearer to pass color vision tests that are required for certain types of employment. EnChroma does not guarantee that its lenses will allow the wearer to pass a color vision test, but says its glasses can help color blind people experience color vision.

At GlassPaint.com, we can’t correct color blindness, but we can help correct the absence of color – especially around glass! Glassprimer™ glass paint offers a highly UV resistant, durable paint that comes in virtually any color and forms a permanent bond with glass. If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: JoJo 77 , via Flickr.com

Under glass print reader ready to go

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Under glass print reader ready to go

Under glass print reader ready to go

Biometric authentication technology has been around for awhile, but it’s about to come to a phone, tablet or laptop near you. Several technology companies are working on under glass fingerprint readers that will be incorporated into trackpads in the near future.

Glass fingerprint readers ready to go

Last month, LG Innotek unveiled its entrant into the biometric authentication sweepstakes. LG’s fingerprint reader sits just under the screen surface of a phone or other mobile device. Current fingerprint readers are separate buttons that reside awkwardly on the front, back or side of a mobile device. They’re either too small, too big or in the way. Which is why the under glass approach is so interesting.

When the fingerprint reader isn’t being used to read fingerprints, the glass surface is available for other functions, so it doesn’t monopolize a section of the device’s touchscreen (or trackpad) surface. Better still, the under glass readers are highly accurate. (That’s always a plus for security technologies.)

LG’s under glass fingerprint reader is likely to hit the market as part of the company’s smartphone line, but other manufacturers could license the technology for use in other devices.

Synaptics has also been working on an under glass fingerprint reader that is meant to be incorporated into laptop trackpads. The company, which has been promoting the technology for about two years, is ready to release it to OEMs. The Synaptics track pad is made of glass, and sits under the track pad surface. Previous iterations of the technology incorporated a glass window in the trackpad, which “reserved” that space for fingerprint reading.

With the new arrangement, the entire trackpad is made of glass, so when the fingerprint reader isn’t active, the entire trackpad surface is available for mousing around. This approach allows OEMs to incorporate the technology into their laptops without sacrificing trackpad space or changing the way it operates.

Synaptics, which makes about 100 million trackpads annually and makes all of Samsung’s smartphone fingerprint readers, believes that biometric authentication will be a standard part of mobile hardware within just a few years.

At Glassprimer™, we’re familiar with some pretty inventive things that go on under glass. If you’re looking for some under glass inspiration, we invite you to check out the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Andre de la Gare, via Flickr.com

Why doesn’t glass crystallize?

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Why doesn't glass crystallize?

Why doesn’t glass crystallize?

Glass isn’t characterized as either a liquid or a solid. Unlike other truly solid objects, glass doesn’t form a crystal structure when it achieves a room temperature. At the same time, it also doesn’t retain the characteristics of a liquid when it cools. Instead, glass gets “stuck” in what’s known as an amorphous state – neither solid nor liquid, but something in between.

German researchers at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz used a light technique to try to explain why glass doesn’t crystallize like other solids do. For years, scientists have been split on what happens when glass hardens. Some scientists believe that the cooling glass molecules “freeze” their thermal motion, which prevents them from attaining a crystallized form. Others believe that the glass molecules clump together as they cool, which produces the same result – a non-crystalline structure.

The scientists discovered that in their liquid state, materials form hard spheres. The concentration of the hard spheres is important, because hard spheres can form either crystals or glass under the right conditions.

In their experiments, the scientists discovered that the concentration of hard spheres is the key to determining whether crystallization or glass formation will occur. A lower concentration of hard spheres leads to crystallization, where a higher concentration of hard spheres in the molten liquid leads to the formation of glass. As one scientist explained, the higher concentration of hard spheres actually prevents crystallization, and results in the formation of glass.

The research is important because it can be applied to other amorphous materials. In addition, being able to impose a crystalline structure on glass may lead to important changes in the strength and performance of glass under specific circumstances. The random arrangement of particles in cooled glass explains why glass shatters or breaks in random pieces, and why glass can contain weak areas that make it more prone to spontaneous breakage.

Regardless of the material state of the glass it coats, Glassprimer™ glass paint cures within 24-72 hours of application. Unlike other paints that either won’t dry or won’t stick, Glassprimer™ glass paint forms a permanent bond with the glass surface, and provides exceptional UV resistance for years.

If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Alexey Kljatov, via Flickr.com

Glass particles in liquid increase light diffusion

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Glass particles in liquid increase light diffusion

Glass particles in liquid increase light diffusion

5D data storage.jpg_SIA_JPG_fit_to_width_INLINEResearchers at MIT have discovered that they can significantly increase light diffusion by suspending glass particles in liquid. They believe that eventually, the work could lead to the creation of holographic video screens and tunable optical displays.

Glass particles and liquid both increase diffusivity

The scientists were surprised by the diffusion they achieved using the process, because it was significantly greater than what current theory predicts. Their experiments involved using glass particles and fluid that have similar refractive properties. This is key because under ordinary conditions, light travels through the experimental media at very similar speeds. When two materials that have different refractive properties are paired, light transmitted through the materials changes directions. They also knew that changes in temperature of the liquid would change its refractivity.

In their experiments, changing the temperature of the liquid by 10 degrees significantly changed the diffusivity of the materials by 10 times, but a change in temperature of 42 degrees increased the diffusivity of the material by 1,000 times. Equally surprising was that the change in temperature increased the diffusivity of both the glass particles and the fluid medium.

The discovery could eventually change the way medical imaging is conducted. The process has the potential to redefine the way health care researchers and professionals look at biological tissues. The technology could also be used to create the illusion of 3-dimensions. In medical imaging, 3-dimensional representations could help diagnose disease and help healthcare professionals visualize tissue structures in the body.

The researchers also believe the technology has other non-medical applications. They envision design applications that will allow the user (or viewer) to “tune” the appearance of solid objects like furniture to suit an interior design plan.

Until “tunable” furniture becomes a reality, you can customize your interior decorating plan with Glassprimer™ glass paint. Glassprimer™ glass paint can be tinted to match any major paint manufacturer’s color palette, and creates a permanent, UV-resistant bond with glass.

If you’re looking for glass inspiration, please visit the rest of our site. If you’d like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store .

Photo Credit: Kenneth Lu, via Flickr.com