Which Glass Should Prefer for Glass Railing in Commercial Buildings

Made up with liquid sand, it is a building material that is known as amorphous solid. It is a non-crystalline solid that displays as a glass transition. The melting point around 1700◦C, the glass material can transmute from a rigid form to brittle state or into the molten form. The non-amorphous form of this stable solid has various translucent forms of reliable and different random structures of liquid. In a commercial building, the glass is commonly use as glass railing. In commercial areas, it is known as architectural glass. This material is used as transculent shiny or glossy material in the constructional envelope that includes external walls of the building. Known as a popular architectural feature, tempered glass is also beneficial for the inner sections of the construction building.

Among all types, Silicate glass is considered as a common functioning form of glass that consists of silicon dioxide or silicon SiO2.  The properties and color of the silicate glass can be changed with the addition of other compounds and impurities. From packaging to constructional purposes and from domestic objects to glazing and car widening, glass can be manipulated into a wide range of different uses. With the features of lamination, reinforcement, and toughness, the tempered material of this type is popular because of its safety measures. In this guide, you can learn the properties and different types of glass that you can prefer for glass railing purposes in buildings.

Properties of Glass

The properties of glass can be controlled by adding different impurities in the composition of glass. From tempered glass to silicate glass, the cooling rates are different, and their properties widely depend upon the rate and proposition of end batch mixture.

• With the addition of impurities and compounds in the end mixture, the reflectance and transparency rate can be changed.
• Ranging between solidifying material to liquid, glass may be translucent, opaque, and reflective, back tinted, temper etc.
• The solar properties of glass can easily control for transmitting, absorb, reflect, and transfer different wavelength radiations of the sun.
• The optical properties such as infra-red (long wavelength rays) properties are different and contrarily affect the emissivity of glass.
• Ultraviolet value of the glass can easily control the glass layer’s R-value and the value of heat transference.
• For increasing the abilities surviving ability of glass from deformation, shattering and shearing under load, lamination and admixtures are two easy and possible ways.
• From welding to pressing, and from blowing to drawing, temper glass and silicate glass can be used in different ways.
• With the 100% guarantee of recycling scraps of glass are also used in the manufacturing of railing glass. It is also used as an aggregate and raw material in the manufacturing process of concrete.
• Recycling process doesn’t affect the working quality, efficiency, strength, and functionality of glass.

Specification of glass

The specifications for glass are

Heat strengthened glass: the power of this glass form is twice then the strength of annealed glass and it can form by reheating the annealed glass beyond the temperature of 1200 F. It is used as lamination in buildings.

Float glass: this specification of glass is known as the modern process of making glass sheets, glass railings and creating thin, flat and large glass panels. This glass form is consisting of a molten form of glass that floats into the molten pool of tin.

Fully tempering glass: it is the technique in which stiff form of the glass is heated in the same process as heat strengthened the glass. Due to the rapid coolness process, the inner side of the tempered glass remains in fluid form as compared to the inner surface. As compared to other glass forms, tempered glass smashes into small portions and not in piercing shards and highly used as security purposes in different buildings.

Compositions of glass

Include temper glass and silicate glass; there are many other compositions of glass that can effectively use during the construction process and for building commercial glass railings. Let’s learn different types of glass that can be used for glass railings in commercial buildings.

Crown glass:

The crown method is known as one of the oldest hack for manufacturing glass windows and railing in commercial buildings. This hot blown glass was cut open against the pipe and spun on the table before its temperature cooldown. With the help of centrifugal force, the shape of the hot glass material transferred into a round and flat sheet. After making the glass sheets, it was tearing off from the pipe and carefully cut into the rectangular shape of glass windows and railings. This method of making flat glass railings was costly and could not make large glass panels in commercial areas. In the 19th century, this method of glass railings was replaced by cylinder, rolled and glass sheets. The origin of this glass composition is never ended and still use in the different restoration process and building of traditional buildings.

Polished plate glass:

The manufacturing process of this glass composition starts with the glass sheet or roll glass plate. Due to inaccurate dimensions, the polished glass plate is used to create visual distortion. Usually, this is an expensive process because the rough panes of glass are firstly ground flat and then polished with explicit material. Before the floating process of glass, this composition of glass was nearly seen in every amusement park or in the museum for creating visual or dimensional distortion.

Prism Glass:

This composition of railing glass is known as architectural glass that effectively bends light. In 20thcentury, the use of prism glass was increased highly for underground spaces and for the areas where the light was not easily reachable. With its extensive list of features, you can find prism glass at sidewalks of the building where it is known as vault lightning. At canopies, glass railings, partitions, and windows, prism glass is known as prism tiles. In past years, this glass composition is also known as deck prism that efficiently light spaces below the decks in sailing ships.

Among all this, glass blocks, laminated glass, wired glass, transparent glass, low-E coating glasses are also the most common glass forms that are used in the construction of buildings as glass railings.