Also known as toughened glass and safety glass, tempered glass is a material with significantly higher strength compared to traditional annealed glass. The higher strength of this type of glass can be attributed to its chemical or thermal treatment. Tempering of glass leaves its interior in a state of tension and the outer surface in a state of compression. Instead of shards with sharp edges, tempered glass breaks into granular pieces because of these mechanical stresses. This reduces the risk of injury while working with this type of glass.

As a result of its excellent strength and safety, tempered glass is used extensively in many industries. Some of the most common applications include architectural components, vehicle windows, refrigerator trays, cell phone screens, shower doors, cookware, etc. If you want to know more about the properties and applications of tempered glass, please continue reading this brief article.

Properties of Tempered Glass 

Compared to conventional glass, tempered glass is both physically and thermally stronger. As mentioned earlier, tempered glass gets treated for creating an internal as well as external stress within its material. The minimum compressive stress of any tempered glass must be 69 megapascals or 10,000 psi. Also, a tempered glass is considered to be a safety glass, only when its surface compressive stress is more than 100 megapascals or15, 000 psi. As a result of its increased surface stress, tempered glass breaks into small circular pieces. This glass type is used extensively for explosion proof and high pressure applications because of this property.

The most important properties of tempered glass are summarised below

• Can be shaped into different styles and forms to be used in various applications.
• Can withstand extreme temperatures and other conditions because of its impact resistance.
• As a result of its superior strength, tempered glass is suitable for demanding applications that have high environmental loads.
• The process of tempering causes optical distortion, making tempered glass less clear compared to float glass.
• Cutting and grinding of glass must be done before tempering because these processes create cracks when the glass is tempered.

Applications of Tempered Glass

Tempered glass is extremely suitable for any application that requires safety, strength, and thermal resistance. Also, tempered glass is used extensively in construction projects and many other industries.

Residential Construction: Many of our regularly used home appliances and furniture have tempered glass parts.

• Frameless shower doors
• Glass near fireplaces
• Frameless shower doors
• Cabinets and glass shelves

Commercial Buildings: One of the most important applications of tempered glass is for creating building envelopes and facades. Unframed assemblies like frameless glass doors are also created using tempered glass.  This type of glass can also be used for structurally loaded applications and other applications where glass can have a hazardous impact.

• Doors, windows, and decorative panels.
• Partitions for homes, hotels, offices, and other commercial buildings.

Foodservice Applications: Tempered glass products are also found in many restaurants, bars, hotels, and other foodservice applications. By minimising the probability of glass-related accidents, tempered glass makes these appliances safer for users.

If you want to know more about tempered glass and its uses, please contact us at GM Fabrication.  We have over four decades of experience in glass fabrication.