plate glass

plate glass
plate-glass, plateglass, adj.
a soda-lime-silica glass formed by rolling the hot glass into a plate that is subsequently ground and polished, used in large windows, mirrors, etc.
[1720-30]

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      form of glass originally made by casting and rolling and characterized by its excellent surface produced by grinding and polishing. Plate glass was first made in the 17th century in France, after which several improvements in the original batch technique culminated in the Bicheroux process (1918), in which the glass was received by power-driven rollers that then delivered it in thinner sheets of greater length to be sheared into sections and annealed (heated, then cooled, to make it less brittle). A continuous process was then developed in which the glass passed through the annealing stage before being cut into lengths, ground, and polished.

      A technique developed in Great Britain in the 1950s, called the float-glass method, results in an important economy of space. The molten glass is conveyed onto a bath of a molten metal, such as tin. The high temperature of the molten metal smooths out any irregularities on the surface, making a flat, even sheet. As the glass floats on top of the bath, the temperature of the molten metal is gradually reduced until the glass solidifies.

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Plate glass — Plate Plate, n. [OF. plate a plate of metal, a cuirsas, F. plat a plate, a shallow vessel of silver, other metal, or earth, fr. plat flat, Gr. ?. See {Place}, n.] 1. A flat, or nearly flat, piece of metal, the thickness of which is small in… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Plate glass — Glass Glass (gl[.a]s), n. [OE. glas, gles, AS. gl[ae]s; akin to D., G., Dan., & Sw. glas, Icel. glas, gler, Dan. glar; cf. AS. gl[ae]r amber, L. glaesum. Cf. {Glare}, n., {Glaze}, v. t.] [1913 Webster] 1. A hard, brittle, translucent, and… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • plate-glass — plateˈ glass adjective 1. Made with or consisting of plate glass 2. (of a building) having large plate glass windows, appearing to be built entirely of plate glass 3. (hence) used of any very modern building or institution, esp British… …   Useful english dictionary

  • plate glass — plate′ glass′ n. cer a soda lime silica glass formed by rolling the hot glass into a plate that is subsequently ground and polished and used in large windows, mirrors, etc • Etymology: 1720–30 …   From formal English to slang

  • plate glass — n [U] big pieces of glass made in large thick sheets, used especially in shop windows …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • plate glass — noun uncount glass in large, thick pieces, used for store windows …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • plate glass — ► NOUN ▪ thick fine quality glass used for shop windows and doors, originally cast in plates …   English terms dictionary

  • plate glass — n. ground and polished, clear glass in thick sheets used for shop windows, mirrors, etc …   English World dictionary

  • plate glass — noun glass formed into large thin sheets • Syn: ↑sheet glass • Hypernyms: ↑sheet, ↑flat solid • Hyponyms: ↑cover glass, ↑cover slip, ↑pane, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • plate glass — also plate glass N UNCOUNT Plate glass is thick glass made in large, flat pieces, which is used especially to make large windows and doors …   English dictionary

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