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Tesla S Gets A Glass Roof

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Tesla S Gets A Glass Roof

Tesla S Gets A Glass Roof

Tesla Motors announced earlier this month that the Model S will come with an all-glass roof option. The new all-glass approach one-ups itself. Tesla had previously offered a panoramic sunroof that included a center cross member. The new all-glass sunroof can be yours (or anyone else’s) for about $2,000 extra per month on a buy, and about $24 per month on a lease.

The panoramic sunroof, which is currently still available, can be had for about $1,500 if you buy, $32 extra per month if you lease. The panoramic sunroof with the center cross member is required if you also want the roof rack and satellite radio.

If you’re worried that a glass roof will treat you like an ant under a magnifying glass on a sunny day, don’t. The glass roof (panoramic or otherwise), blocks about 98% of UV light and more than 80% of the heat that might otherwise be generated. In short, you won’t get roasted!

According to the car’s website, there is no sunshade available for the glass-roofed car (yet), but the car does have a built in “overheat” protection. Owners can also turn on the air conditioning in the car via a smartphone app before returning to the vehicle.

Earlier this year, Tesla announced the Model 3, which incorporates virtually uninterrupted glass from the windshield to the rear deck. While the Model 3 doesn’t use a single piece of glass, it does make heavy use of glass throughout the passenger cabin. The Model 3 isn’t even in production yet, and is unlikely to be consumer-ready before the end of 2017, but other manufacturers are taking note of consumer preferences for glass.

If you don’t think a car in the $75,000 – $100,000 range will work well for your wallet, Audi, BMW, Chrysler, Hyundai, Kia, Lincoln, Mini Cooper, Toyota and Volkswagen all have panoramic sunroof or moonroof options on some of their vehicles.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: Steve Jurvetson, via Flickr.com

Solar energy from ordinary windows?

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Solar energy from ordinary windows?

Solar energy from ordinary windows?

Developing clean energy sources is a major priority for environmentalists, and solar energy has emerged as a clean source with high potential. Solar energy is usually created in large scale “solar farms.” They are ground based arrays of solar collectors. While they generate a lot of clean energy, they also take up a lot of space.

In rural areas, space isn’t a major problem. In cities, there’s virtually no space available for solar energy production. Rooftop arrays are one possibility, but even then, many buildings don’t have enough space to host collector arrays.

Enter the researchers from the Los Alamos National Laboratory, who have developed a new glass coating that could turn ordinary windows into solar energy collectors. The new approach uses “quantum dots” that collect solar energy and then direct it to a separate solar cell. (Most solar collectors are self-contained units that have the collector and the solar cell in one package.)

The coated window acts as a concentrator for UV light energy. The quantum dots can be customized to accept certain light frequencies and reject others. A traditional solar cell has a life expectancy of about 20 years, whereas the quantum dot coating lasts only about 14 years. The coating is about 2% efficient and it’s very easy to apply to the glass surface.

Using various combinations of cadmium, selenium, zinc and sulfur, the researchers are able to create a collector that accepts only high-energy photons and allows them to migrate from the concentrator to the edge of the glass. The migrating photon is captured and directed to a solar cell.

The researchers believe that the coating is very stable, and could even be removed and reused in a remanufacturing process. The coating is not ready to move into production. It’s efficiency level is still too low to make commercialization worthwhile, however, the researchers believe that by tweaking the coating formula, they can increase the efficiency of the coating to make it economically viable.

Low cost photovoltaics may allow significant energy production from existing glass surfaces in urban areas. While this coating is applied in the manufacturing stage, it’s possible that a method could be devised for applying the coating to glass that’s already in place.

Reducing the need for additional energy production could help in the fight against global warming, reduce operating costs and make energy more widely available in urban areas.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: David Strom, via Flickr.com

How to recycle dead glass solar panels

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How to recycle dead glass solar panels

How to recycle dead glass solar panels

The move toward solar energy as a “clean” source of electricity is definitely underway. Solar energy is more attractive in some areas than in others, but the growing population of solar panels is raising questions about what happens when a solar panel dies?

The life expectancy of a solar panel is somewhere in the 20-30 year range. Japan alone expects to retire somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 million old solar panels annually by 2040. That’s the equivalent of more than 100,000 solar panels each day. The logistics of disposal at that volume require some thought, so Japan is making plans to do just that!

The contemporary solar panel is a five-layered affair, with glass being on top. Recycling glass isn’t much of a trick; glass is used and reused regularly. The glass in a solar panel isn’t contaminated, so recycling the glass is comparatively easy.

The second and fourth layers of a solar cell consists of ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), which surround the third layer – the actual solar cell. The EVA is laminated to the solar cell using heat, which sticks the solar-and-EVA-sandwich to the glass top layer. The fifth layer is the backing. Once all of the components are layered together, they’re stored in an aluminum frame. Add some wires and other minor components and you have a basic solar cell.

Because the EVA is stuck to the glass, the recycling process needs to include a method for freeing the glass. Not surprisingly, the “unsticking” process involves heat. The dead solar cell is heated to about 400° F, which softens the EVA layer enough to release the glass with a little mechanical help.

The goal is to recycle at least 80% of the country’s retired solar cells. What happens to the other 20%? The hope is that they can be pressed into service again in areas that receive significant sun exposure. The efficiency of a solar cell degrades over time. After 20 years in service, the average solar cell can generate only 80% of the electricity that a new cell does. While that could make a cell’s value questionable in some parts of the world, an older solar cell could continue working effectively in areas that receive a lot of sunlight.

Additional work needs to be done to improve testing of old solar cells. Improved testing will make it easier to determine which cells should be broken down and which ones can be reassigned. The work to dismantle, recycle and reuse solar cells that’s being done today will reap significant rewards in the next 20—30 years, not just for Japan but for countries worldwide.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: coniferconifer, via Flickr.com

Battle of the backsplashes: Glass v. stone

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Battle of the backsplashes: Glass v. stone

Battle of the backsplashes: Glass v. stone

Decorators are always on the prowl for new materials. Glass and stone have emerged as popular materials for certain applications. Many homeowners are finding new ways to incorporate glass and stone into their homes. These two heavyweights have staked out their territories in the kitchen and bath. It raises the question of which material is better for home decorating?

Glass has its advantages

Glass is the ultimate team player. It lends a high-end look to just about any room, and it oozes practicality. It’s easy to clean, comes in a variety of thicknesses, and can be tempered to add strength. Glass is so versatile that it can be used on the walls, floors, countertops, cabinet fronts, doors and just about any other space.

Glass is valued for its transparency, but that doesn’t mean you can’t spruce it up with a little color. Glassprimer™ glass paint is formulated especially for use on glass surfaces. The paint bonds permanently to the glass surface, and won’t chip, peel or fade, even in direct sunlight. You can cover glass surfaces for about $1 per square foot.

You can apply glass in custom-cut sheets, tiles or even in cement/epoxy composites and get the benefit of glass. While custom tile glass backsplashes can be expensive, you can create a cost-effective backsplash by backpainting glass and attaching it to walls with silicone adhesive in kitchens and bathrooms.

Natural stone backsplashes and other surfaces can also be cost-effective, but natural stones are porous. They may be vulnerable to damage from some household cleaners. To maintain sanitation, the stone surfaces will need to be sealed periodically – perhaps as frequently as once per year. Since glass is impervious, no sealing is needed, and glass can tolerate prolonged contact with virtually all household cleaners and sanitizers.

Natural stone surfaces can (and do) degrade over time. Their natural colors may change due to exposure to cleaning chemicals, and they can detach or become dislodged from the mortar. In addition, natural stones can break following an impact. A broken stone will need to be replaced, and that can be a complicated repair!

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

Photo Credit: jason mcarthur, via Flickr.com

Glass pennies?! Lost glass penny rediscovered

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Glass pennies?! Lost glass penny rediscovered

Glass pennies?! Lost glass penny rediscovered

During World War II, the United States government was looking for ways to reduce the copper content of pennies, in order to make more copper available for the war effort. Copper was a rationed item, and in 1942, the War Production Board refused to allocate any copper to the US Mint for penny production for 1943.

That sent the US Mint looking for potential substitute materials. The Mint conducted its own experiments with metals and alloys, but also invited private companies to submit prospective replacements for the copper penny made from plastics and alternative materials. As part of the invitation, the Mint loaned specially crafted dies that were to be used by participating companies to produce the samples. The sample dies contained an impression of Liberty and the date for the obverse side, and a wreath with the words “United States Mint” on the reverse side.

The Blue Ridge Glass Company acquired a set of the dies and produced a very limited number of glass samples, using penny-sized tempered blanks created by Corning. The experiment didn’t work very well. To make a glass penny, both the die and the blank had to be heated to just below the melting point of glass. They weren’t able to heat the die properly, and they were only able to achieve soft detail on the glass blanks. In addition, the resulting glass “pennies” had a large number of surface imperfections.

The Blue Ridge Glass Company prepared a report for the US Mint, and that was the end of the glass penny. Only one known example of a glass penny existed, and it was broken in half. Recently, a second example, which is intact, was discovered and graded by the Professional Coin Grading Service. The intact example, which is owned by a private collector, is a virtually identical match to the known, broken coin.

Even without its obvious production flaws, the glass penny likely never would have made it to the production stage. The dimensions and weight of each penny could not be standardized, meaning that each penny would have been slightly different – a violation of the US Mint’s uniformity standards.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: Professional Coin Grading Service

Colorado School gets glass strength grant

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Colorado School gets glass strength grant

Colorado School gets glass strength grant

Glass is both spectacular and fascinating, but the things that make it amazing also challenge our ability to use it. It’s easy to think of glass as a solid material. You can touch it without changing it. It has a hard surface. It has most of the characteristics of a solid. Except that one thing that makes it truly solid – a crystalline molecular structure.

We don’t usually look at glass at the molecular level, but if we did, we’d see glass molecules arranged in a random pattern instead of the typical, neatly ordered structure that gives solids their strength. That molecular randomness makes glass weaker than other materials, and it makes it tough to classify glass as a solid, even though it seems… well … solid.

The Usable Glass Strength Coalition has given an $80,000 grant to the Colorado School of Mines to study glass in order to improve the industry’s understanding of the strength of glass. The CSM proposal was chosen because it advances strength research that was already performed by researchers at Pennsylvania State University. The CSM researchers hope to answer questions about why glass surfaces can lose strength as they interact with their environment.

The researchers will examine flaws in glass and glass components that set or contribute to inherent weaknesses in finished glass. Understanding the mechanisms that make glass weak may help scientists develop new manufacturing methods or discover new materials that can enhance the strength of glass.

Improving the strength of glass can contribute to advances in many different fields, including science and research, manufacturing, construction, clean energy and telecommunications, among others. Today, glass is typically strengthened by heat-treatment or by coating the glass surface to make it more resistant to contact injuries.

Heat-treated glass is significantly stronger than untreated glass, but it may also suffer from manufacturing defects that are hard to detect and can result in catastrophic failures. New coatings can also strengthen and protect a glass surface, but they can be expensive to create and may not protect against common accidents. Being able to strengthen glass at the molecular level may reduce the need to treat glass after manufacturing, and may produce better, more reliable results.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: Steven Duong, via Flickr.com

Glass Toaster Is More Than Just A Pretty Face

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Glass Toaster Is More Than Just A Pretty Face

Glass Toaster Is More Than Just A Pretty Face

No one likes the idea of getting old, and as it turns out, small things can make a home dangerous for people as they age. One issue that arises more often for older folks is burned toast. On the surface, burned toast sounds more like a nuisance than a problem, but burned toast can lead to other, more serious things – like kitchen fires and questions about whether older adults are able to maintain their own homes. Enter the glass toaster.

According to elder care providers, small changes – like the addition of a glass toaster – can make a big difference for older adults who are trying to “age in place.” Glass toasters allow the user to view the bread as it toasts, and provide a visual reminder to the user that the toaster is in use. Glass toasters tend to virtually eliminate burned toast- and the smoke alarm response that may accompany it.

Several manufacturers make glass-sided toasters, and they’ve been on the market since about 2010. While most are designed with style in mind, their practicality is undeniable, especially for older users.

Using glass in the kitchen offers a number of advantages for an “aging-in-place” strategy. Glass countertops and backsplashes are durable and easy to care for. Using a coating like Glassprimer™ glass paint, glass can be backpainted and applied directly to kitchen walls using neutral cure silicone caulk.

If you prefer a lighter weight material, Glassprimer™ glass paint can be applied to Plexiglas™, a lightweight alternative to glass. Plexiglas™ can be used to replace or liven up cabinet fronts and drawer fronts. It’s not recommended for use close to the stove, but Plexiglas™ is easy to install and remove, and it can be cleaned easily with ordinary household cleaners.

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

Photo Credit: Day Donaldson, via Flickr.com

Glass Adds Style to Home

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Glass Adds Style to Home

Glass Adds Style to Home

If you’re intent on adding a modern touch to your home, there’s no better material to work with than glass. It delivers a minimalist touch while retaining its oh-so-practical nature. Glass is insanely versatile, and it’s rarely impractical in the modern space.

Glass works so well precisely because it’s so minimal. There’s just something irresistible about being able to see through a space. Glass allows natural light to travel, so it’s definitely high on the list of materials for small spaces, and spaces that have limited access to natural lighting.

Glass comes in a variety of thicknesses, which means it can be used for more than just windows. Glass walls, staircases, floors and countertops can all find a place in the modern home.

If you want to go glass on a staircase, you’ll need to consult with architects, fabricators and contractors that have specific experience with creating glass staircases. While they seem light and airy, there’s a bevy of local code requirements for staircases (made from any material), and you’ll need to plan accordingly for railings and other required safety measures.

Glass countertops are all the rage, and can be made in a number of ways. Thick glass can be used as a counter surface. The advantage of going with straight glass is that you can light it and paint it to your liking. Glass can also be bound with epoxy or cement to make a composite countertop. Composites are strong and can add a delightful visual component to your counters.

You can also use glass as a backsplash or wall covering. Glass and glass tiles are extremely popular right now, and can give your kitchen or bathroom a unique appearance. When used as a wall covering, glass is relatively easy to work with, and can be decorated easily.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: , via Flickr.com

Secret of metallic glasses revealed

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Secret of metallic glasses revealed

Secret of metallic glasses revealed

Researchers at the University of Bristol say they have confirmed a long-standing theory about how metallic glasses form. Metallic glasses are prized substances because they’re harder and stronger than regular glass. They’re also much rarer than some would like, partially because we don’t have a good understanding of how metallic glasses actually form.

Since the 1950’s, a popular theory (developed by a physicist at the University of Bristol) regarding the way metallic glass forms has held among scientists. That theory says that if the metallic components organize in a pentagram shape, they can stop the crystallization of the glass particles, which is the key to metallic glass formation.

Ordinary glass naturally has faults between grains, which permits microfractures and makes it inherently weak. Metallic glass has no naturally occurring faults between grains, which makes it inherently strong. While that sounds good, the theory been impossible to confirm because scientists haven’t been able to prove without a doubt that the prevention of crystallization yields metallic glass formation.

Now, researchers have been able to use a computer simulation to reveal the mechanism by which the 5-sided metallic formation inhibits crystal formation. By changing the energy demands made on microcrystals at the surface, the rate of crystallization is slowed, allowing the metallic components to form a strong, 5-sided structure that allows glass to take on the strength and hardness characteristics of metal.

The confirmation of the theory about how metallic glass forms opens up new opportunities to make new metallic glass mixtures with potentially novel characteristics. It also points to the versatility and the growing importance of glass in a variety of applications.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specialized glass coating that bonds permanently to glass surfaces. GlassPrimer also makes a glass surface molecular activator that is designed to work with UV-inkjet glass printing processes. 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: Chris Dlugosz, via Flickr.com

Thin film eliminates condensation on glass

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Thin film eliminates condensation on glass

Thin film eliminates condensation on glass

Condensation – that thin film of water that collects on glass – causes more problems than one might think of. Condensation occurs when warmer, humid air comes in contact with a cold surface. Water in the air condenses and collects on the cold surface, causing the cold surface to “fog.” If the cold surface is a window, the window is obscured.

You can see condensation at work in the supermarket when you open the door of a refrigerated case. Warm air from outside the case rushes in and quickly fogs the glass, making it difficult to see inside the case once you close the door. Refrigerated cases have built in heaters that evaporate condensation off of the interior glass surface. Having a heater inside a refrigerator is a little counterintuitive. It’s also expensive.

By itself, refrigeration is expensive. Currently, the typical household refrigerator consumes more energy over the course of a year than any other electrical appliance. People spend more on refrigeration than they spend on heat! Commercial refrigerators are even more expensive, so adding heat to the refrigerator in order to combat condensation simply increases the cost of refrigeration.

By eliminating condensation inside the refrigerator quickly and without added heat, retailers can reduce the cost of refrigeration. What’s the secret? A super-hydrophobic thin-film acetate coating applied to the interior glass surface repels water so it drains away immediately, without the need for heaters inside the refrigerator case.

According to the manufacturer, retailers could save about $85 per year per standard refrigerator case. At that level, the film could pay for itself through reduced energy consumption in less than 2.5 years.

Coatings can allow glass to do some pretty amazing things! For example, Glassprimer™ glass paint is a specially engineered glass coating that creates a permanent bond with glass surfaces. Glassprimer™ glass paint can be tinted to match any major paint manufacturer’s paint palette. That means you can easily incorporate painted glass into any decorating scheme. Whether your project is completely interior, completely exterior or a bit of both, Glassprimer™ glass paint offers exceptional durability, UV resistance and versatility.

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: Martin and Jessica O’Brien, via Flickr.com