Infrared for the Glass Industry -- Effective Results for the Process

Many stages in glass processing need heat. In an increasing number of cases, infrared heating technology offers an excellent solution to heating challenges.


Drying of Paint and Coating on Glass

Whether it's a screen print on car windshields, coatings on mirror backs or paint on decoration glass, the widest range of coatings on glass are dried reliably and in-line with infrared heaters from Heraeus Noblelight. Infrared radiation penetrates into the material and dries the lacquer film from the inside out; skin or blister formation on the surface is prevented, and the drying of the lacquer or coating is sped up. The result is a brilliant surface quality. Compared with warm air drying,time, space and energy are saved.

Laminated Glass

There are a number of heating stages in the manufacture and processing of laminated glass, and infrared heat is well-suited to all of them. Laminated glass is produced by fusing several sheets of glass, joined by a PVB plastic foil. Varieties of laminated glass produced in very large sheets often must be split into smaller pieces. The glass is scored, broken into pieces and then separated with foil. The separation process is achieved efficiently through use of infrared. A fast response medium wave infrared heater with a gold reflector heats the foil only in the small space resulting from the glass breakage. The foils can then be easily separated with cutting tools. Heraeus lamps allow the cutting of the large sheets in one step.

Annealing (Stabilization of Glass by Heat)

After forming, glass develops stresses during cooling. These stresses can cause shattering during subsequent processing. To remove stress (and to reduce scrap), glass is subjected to an annealing process at a controlled temperature profile. Infrared heaters are ideally suited for this process because of their high degree of control. An annealing tunnel with infrared modules can be individually regulated with a fast response to effectively produce maintenance-free products such as incandescent bulbs and energy-saving lamps in an energy efficient way.

Operations in Vacuum

In the production of thin film solar cells, float glass sheets are heated prior to coating. This process requires a vacuum situation. Infrared lamps, which generate heat directly in the vacuum space, can heat the float glass very effectively. Heraeus can modify specific lamps for operation in vacuum by means of special sockets and leads with special voltages as required.

Explore this site for application solutions employing infrared technology. Heraeus offers complete systems using infrared technology; we can design a system to meet your specific, unique and demanding needs.
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Heraeus Noblelight  •  Buford GA 30518 USA  •  Phone 678.835.5764  •  Email sales@noblelight.net