The science of glass development

The impressive performance of the latest architectural glass products is often down to extremely thin surface coatings, normally made up of many different layers, each around 1,000 times thinner than a human hair.  

The order of these layers and their exact thickness determines how the glass performs, and advanced scientific techniques are essential in measuring and understanding the microscopic structures involved.

The impressive performance of the latest architectural glass products is often down to extremely thin surface coatings, normally made up of many different layers, each around 1,000 times thinner than a human hair.

The order of these layers and their exact thickness determines how the glass performs, and advanced scientific techniques are essential in measuring and understanding the microscopic structures involved.

In this video, Gary Nichol, resource group manager, thin film technology at Pilkington Group Limited talks us through the scientific research and development capabilities available to the company at its European Technical Centre in Lathom, Lancashire, UK.

He explains the role that methods including depth-profiling mass spectrometry, electron microscopy and X-Ray diffraction play in developing innovative new high-performance coatings and further improving existing products.

Coatings developed at the Lathom facility feature on a wide range of Pilkington products, including Pilkington Activ™ self-cleaning glass, Pilkington K Glass™ thermal insulating glass and Pilkington Suncool™ solar-control glass. To find out more about these products visit www.pilkington.co.uk/activand www.pilkington.co.uk/suncool.