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How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

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Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#31

Post by js2 »

Wingman4l7 wrote: post #19

I got peeved with Corning the other day when I found out they let another company produce Pyrex-brand glass under license which is not borosilicate glass. The whole point of Pyrex was resistance to heat, which you don't get with the cheaper soda-lime glass. At least I learned how to tell them apart (soda-lime has a blueish color, and borosilicate is clear).

Only in the US where Pyrex is made by World Kitchen. In Europe, Arc Internationl still uses borosilicate for Pyrex-brand glass. Also, FWIW, a popular US glass bakeware manufacturer claims tempered soda-lime glass is stronger while still as heat resistant as borosilicate:

http://www.anchorhocking.com/Bakeware_Facts.html#BORSILICATE

Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#32

Post by dpark »

Geee wrote: post #29

Gorilla glass is far from perfect material for smartphone displays, because it shatters so easily. There are pretty good plastic materials too, especially those used in eyeglasses. Apparently, glass still offers the best scratch-resistance, but I would rather have a non-shattering display.

Plastic isn't shatter-proof, either, especially not if it's sturdy enough and thin enough to be considered a replacement for gorilla glass.

Even if plastic were shatter-proof, I'd much rather have a display that's clear and breakable than one that's unbreakable but scratched all to hell. I've never had a pair of glasses (high-end plastic lenses) that didn't get noticeably scratched within a couple of years, and they get a lot less abuse than my phone.

Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#33

Post by dpark »

mercuryrising wrote: post #5

For some reason, on Chrome, the linked article is teeny (text is completely unreadable). Anyway - it's funny how some of the best discoveries are accidental. I don't know anything about Don Stookey, but I'm guessing this played a large part of his induction into the inventor's hall of fame. But he didn't really do anything, he didn't set out to make the next best glass, but he accidentally did. Usually hall of fames…

> would a plastic casing surrounding the glass absorb some of the fall?

Almost certainly. As you noted, the ratio of broken screens seems to be much higher on the 4/4S. I've got a 3GS than I've dropped many times, a few times onto concrete. The glass is still pristine, because the plastic absorbed the impact (and has scratches and small dents to show it).

Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#34

Post by mturmon »

385668 wrote: post #22
tomrod wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Jobs. I sure respect the man. Uncompromising vision!

It is amazing what vision, a few hundred million dollars, and Chinese serf labor can do.

As the article states, the first-gen Gorilla glass was manufactured in a very advanced facility in Kentucky and shipped to China for polishing and cutting. The Kentucky factory had been in existence since 1952.

As this article

http://www.kentucky.com/2012/04/16/2152727/harrodsburg-produ...

states, the manufacturing of subsequent generations has gone to factories in Japan and Taiwan. But the Kentucky factory is still expanding. According to the article, the average wage of a new set of added jobs was $25/hour.

I don't see what the problem is. Any time engineering advances like this yield exotic materials with amazing and useful properties, we technologists should be appreciative.

Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#35

Post by ak217 »

js2 wrote: post #31
Wingman4l7 wrote: post #19

I got peeved with Corning the other day when I found out they let another company produce Pyrex-brand glass under license which is not borosilicate glass. The whole point of Pyrex was resistance to heat, which you don't get with the cheaper soda-lime glass. At least I learned how to tell them apart (soda-lime has a blueish color, and borosilicate is clear).

Only in the US where Pyrex is made by World Kitchen. In Europe, Arc Internationl still uses borosilicate for Pyrex-brand glass. Also, FWIW, a popular US glass bakeware manufacturer claims tempered soda-lime glass is stronger while still as heat resistant as borosilicate: http://www.anchorhocking.com/Bakeware_Facts.html#BORSILICATE

That's really funny, because a glass baking form made by Anchor shattered in my oven recently, spraying the whole oven with glass shards, ruining my food, and making it a huge pain to clean up.

So... as heat resistant as pyrex? Not in my experience.

Re: How Corning Created the Ultrathin, Ultrastrong Material of the Future

#36

Post by Wingman4l7 »

js2 wrote: post #31
Wingman4l7 wrote: post #19

I got peeved with Corning the other day when I found out they let another company produce Pyrex-brand glass under license which is not borosilicate glass. The whole point of Pyrex was resistance to heat, which you don't get with the cheaper soda-lime glass. At least I learned how to tell them apart (soda-lime has a blueish color, and borosilicate is clear).

Only in the US where Pyrex is made by World Kitchen. In Europe, Arc Internationl still uses borosilicate for Pyrex-brand glass. Also, FWIW, a popular US glass bakeware manufacturer claims tempered soda-lime glass is stronger while still as heat resistant as borosilicate: http://www.anchorhocking.com/Bakeware_Facts.html#BORSILICATE

Unfortunately not true; the Pyrex I've seen sold in Australia is soda-lime glass as well.
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