Chemically temperable glass sheet

Abstract

The invention relates to a glass sheet having a boron-, strontium- and lithium-free glass composition comprising the following in weight percentage, expressed with respect to the total weight of glass: 65≦SiO2≦78%; 8≦Na2O≦15%; 1≦K2O<6%; 1≦Al2O3<6%; 2≦CaO<10%; 0≦MgO≦6%; as well as a K2O / (K2O+Na2O) ratio which is ranging from 0.1 and 0.7. The invention corresponds to an easy chemically-temperable soda-lime-silica type glass composition, which is more suited for use in electronic devices applications.

Description

1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to a glass sheet which is able to be chemically tempered / strengthened. In particular, the present invention relates to a glass sheet which is able to be easily chemically tempered / strengthened and which is inexpensive and easy to produce.[0002]Chemically strengthened glass sheets are finding increasing applications in specialized glazing jobs where a mechanical resistance is required / mandatory, in a monolithic or laminated form, like transportation (i.e. aeronautical, automotive), building / architecture and display industries. Amongst such applications, the display industry has become in the several past years a huge market on demand for chemically strengthened transparent glass sheets as protective / cover glass, viewing window or (touch)screen for numerous electronic devices like mobile phones, smartphones, TV, computers, digital cameras, etc. Indeed, as many of these devices are portable, the glass used is mechanically sol...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent is about a new glass composition that is easier to chemically temper and has better ion exchange properties compared to conventional glass compositions. The glass composition also allows for greater depth of exchange while maintaining sufficient strengthening, and it limits stress relaxation when exposed to high temperatures, which allows for deeper exchange without negatively impacting the compressive stresses. These technical effects make the glass composition suitable for use in a "piece-by-piece" process to produce cover glass for display devices.

Problems solved by technology

Nevertheless, a damage capable of affecting the surface of a chemically strengthened glass during its use leads to a decrease in this strengthening effect and can even annihilate it if the damage is such that the layer under compression is penetrated.

However, lithium has the disadvantage of increasing the density of the glass while boron has the disadvantage to cause sometimes formation of ream by its evaporation and furnace wall / refractories corrosion.

Moreover, both have the additional and significant drawback to greatly increase final glass price, due to high price of their corresponding raw materials.

However, they have a lot of drawbacks.

Their high temperature properties make them very difficult to produce (viscosity, fining ability, forming, refractories corrosion).

Their cost is relatively high due to expensiveness of some raw materials to use (i.e. alumina) and due to the high temperatures required for their production (high content of energy / fuel).

Contrary to aluminosilicate glass compositions, soda-lime-silica glass compositions are generally not considered as good candidates for easy chemically temperable compositions, even if they are by far less expensive.

Finally, it is known that it is quite difficult to modify, even slightly, a glass composition, because:a glass production line, and in particular a float line, represents considerable investment and it is not repairable if the composition causes, for example, damages to the refractories; andthe transition time while changing from a composition to another is one parameter which is of high importance when producing glass, because if long, the production cost of the final glass is drastically negatively impacted.

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