Weathering of Soda-Lime and Lead Glasses

The effects of several factors, i.e. temperature, humidity and time on the weathering of soda-lime glasses (float and rolled glasses) were studied by means of AAS, IRRS, XPS, EPM, SEM, EPMA and WDS. Under the same weathering conditions, lead crystal glass with higher alkali content was found to be more liable to weathering. The experimental relationships between the amount of alkali generated and weathering temperature and time for the four kinds of glasses have been derived. The weathering mechanism of soda-lime and lead glasses has been discussed.