What the Heck is Laminated Glass?
A modern car's windshield protects a driver from flying rocks, bugs, and potential accident debris.
The windshield also protects a driver from natural elements that may seem relatively harmless except when traveling at high speeds.
A few of these elements of nature that would affect a driver's ability to safely operate his vehicle might be rain, wind, snow, and possibly even a falling leaf from a tree! In addition to protecting a driver from the natural elements, a properly installed windshield adds to the structural integrity of a car's roof.
That's a lot to expect from a windshield, isn't it? The early windshields protected drivers as long as they didn't shatter or crack.
The moment they broke due to an auto accident, they became more deadly than the auto accident! Imagine large shards of glass (or an entire sheet of it) flying at your face, hands, and neck.
Decapitation and maiming occurred often in automobile accidents during the early days of the automobile due to windshields made out of common glass.
A French chemist invented the laminated glass in 1903.
He accidentally dropped a glass flask and broke it during a laboratory experiment.
The flask had been previously coated with cellulose nitrate - a form of liquid plastic that hardened when cooled.
When the chemist accidentally dropped the flask, it broke but did not shatter due to the plastic coating.
The chemist's name was Edouard Benedictus.
It took at least another 20 years before the automobile industry began to use laminated glass in their vehicles.
By 1939, the Ford motor company had adopted laminated glass for use in its assembly lines.
A company named British Indestructo Glass Limited was manufacturing the glass for Ford motor company at that time.
They were manufacturing the glass in Dagenham England.
Modern day laminated glass is crafted by bonding two or more layers of normal glass together and sandwiching a middle layer of Polyvinyl Butyral between.
After the glass and middle layer of plastic are glued together, large press rollers then push out any air bubbles stuck between the layers of glass.
The final stage of the process requires dipping the windshields into a heated, pressurized oil bath.
The middle layer of polyvinyl prevents the glass from splintering or fragmenting should it crack or shatter during an auto accident.
Your windshield is truly one of the most integral, safety-devices on your automobile - don't take it for granted!
The windshield also protects a driver from natural elements that may seem relatively harmless except when traveling at high speeds.
A few of these elements of nature that would affect a driver's ability to safely operate his vehicle might be rain, wind, snow, and possibly even a falling leaf from a tree! In addition to protecting a driver from the natural elements, a properly installed windshield adds to the structural integrity of a car's roof.
That's a lot to expect from a windshield, isn't it? The early windshields protected drivers as long as they didn't shatter or crack.
The moment they broke due to an auto accident, they became more deadly than the auto accident! Imagine large shards of glass (or an entire sheet of it) flying at your face, hands, and neck.
Decapitation and maiming occurred often in automobile accidents during the early days of the automobile due to windshields made out of common glass.
A French chemist invented the laminated glass in 1903.
He accidentally dropped a glass flask and broke it during a laboratory experiment.
The flask had been previously coated with cellulose nitrate - a form of liquid plastic that hardened when cooled.
When the chemist accidentally dropped the flask, it broke but did not shatter due to the plastic coating.
The chemist's name was Edouard Benedictus.
It took at least another 20 years before the automobile industry began to use laminated glass in their vehicles.
By 1939, the Ford motor company had adopted laminated glass for use in its assembly lines.
A company named British Indestructo Glass Limited was manufacturing the glass for Ford motor company at that time.
They were manufacturing the glass in Dagenham England.
Modern day laminated glass is crafted by bonding two or more layers of normal glass together and sandwiching a middle layer of Polyvinyl Butyral between.
After the glass and middle layer of plastic are glued together, large press rollers then push out any air bubbles stuck between the layers of glass.
The final stage of the process requires dipping the windshields into a heated, pressurized oil bath.
The middle layer of polyvinyl prevents the glass from splintering or fragmenting should it crack or shatter during an auto accident.
Your windshield is truly one of the most integral, safety-devices on your automobile - don't take it for granted!