Toughened safety glass manufactured by Australian Glass Group is engineered to strict standards, offering strength improvements of up to four to five times over float glass of the same thickness.
To render glass that is toughened, it is first cut and processed to the required specifications, before being heated in a furnace to around 650°C to bring it to a plastic state.
The glass is then cooled rapidly by a series of high pressure air nozzles in the quench section. The air nozzles blow air on the top and bottom of the glass.
The quick cooling of the surface of the glass and the slower cooling of the centre creates high compression stress in the glass surface, while the centre remains in tension.
While the physical characteristics of the now toughened safety glass remain the same, the added stresses effectively increases its thermal and mechanical strength.
If this toughened glass does break, it will break into small particles, thereby significantly reducing the risk of serious injury.
In addition, toughened safety glass can withstand a temperature differential of up to 250ºC, making it the perfect product for applications such as showerscreens, splashbacks and for areas that might potentially experience thermal stress.
