The use of silicones in the glass industry

JSGT 1958 V42 T195-T203

Silicones have long been associated with the glass industry; indeed, one of the first commercially available silicones, a resin, was developed specifically for application to glasscloth. At the present time a variety of silicone resins, varnishes, and rubbers are used in conjunction with glasscloth to provide high temperature resistant electrical insulation. The mechanisms by which various organo-silicon compounds impart water-repellency and lubricity to glass surfaces are appreciated as a result of an early basic programme carried out by the Dow Corning Corporation of America. Further development work led to the production of materials designed for specific uses on glass surfaces. The most recent of these is under evaluation in this country as a glass lubricant. The application of silicones, as release agents in the glass industry, is not standard practice and evaluation work still continues in this direction.

T. W. Watson