Synthetic Amorphous Silicate Manufacturing

Silicates are produced by fusing high purity silica sand and alkali materials such as sodium and potassium carbonate under controlled temperature and pressure. In many cases, the silica and alkali are reacted in high-temperature furnaces (furnace route) or in pressurized reactors (hydrothermal route) to form soluble silicate glass. The resulting material can then be dissolved, diluted, or further reacted to reach the desired composition (for example the ratio of silica to alkali SiO2:Na2O), depending on the performance needs of the application.