Chemical Strengthening of Soda Lime Glasses via Ion Exchange Method

Authors : Simay Yanık, Mehtap Arslan, Güldem Kartal Sireli

Pages : 1237-1244

Doi:10.18596/jotcsa.1378346

View : 44 | Download : 67

Publication Date : 2024-08-30

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The aim of this study is to improve the mechanical properties of glasses by the chemical strengthening method via the ion-exchange technique. For this purpose, KNO3 salt baths were utilized for commercial soda-lime glasses. The diffusion-controlled strengthening mechanism is based on creating the compressive stress on the surface of glass by displacing the larger potassium ions with sodium ions. SEM-EDS line scan and XRF analysis, four-point bending, and Vickers hardness tests were performed for the structural and mechanical characterization of ion-exchanged glasses. The optimization of parameters led to a treatment duration of 24 hours at 400°C, resulting in a penetration depth of K+ ions reaching 85 µm. After ion exchange process, the improvement in the hardness, fracture toughness as well as bending strength values ​​of the glasses was observed. The strengthened glasses exhibited notable enhancements in mechanical properties, specifically, hardness increased from 517 HV to 612 HV, and the fracture toughness increased to 3.14 MPa.m1/2 compared to the untreated glass, which displayed the fracture toughness of 1.09 MPa.m1/2. Furthermore, the bending strength of treated specimens significantly improved to 421.6 MPa, representing a five-fold increase over the untreated sample\'s bending strength of 79 MPa.
Keywords : Chemical tempering, ion exchange, mechanical properties, soda lime glass, strength