Preparation of quartz glass bodies with dew point monitoring in the melting oven
AssigneeHeraeus Quarzglas GmbH & Co. KG
InventorsNigel Robert Whippey, Boris Gromann, Matthias Söhn
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Abstract
One aspect relates to a process for the preparation of a quartz glass body. The process includes providing silicon dioxide particles, making a glass melt out of the silicon dioxide particles in an oven and making a quartz glass body out of at least part of the glass melt. The oven has a gas outlet through which gas is removed from the oven, wherein the dew point of the gas on exiting the oven through the gas outlet is less than 0° C. One aspect further relates to a quartz glass body which is obtainable by this process. One aspect further relates to a light guide, an illuminant and a formed body, which are each obtainable by further processing of the quartz glass body.
Claims19
A process for the preparation of a quartz glass body comprising:
- providing silicon dioxide particles, wherein the silicon dioxide particles have a residual moisture;
- making a glass melt out of the silicon dioxide particles in an oven, wherein the oven has a gas outlet through which gas is removed from the oven;
- wherein making the glass melt out of the silicon dioxide particles further comprises:
- providing the silicon dioxide particles in the oven;
- operating the oven, wherein a gas flow is passed through the oven at a gas replacement rate;
- and
- varying the residual moisture of the silicon dioxide particles and varying the gas replacement rate of the gas flow in order to control a dew point of the gas at the outlet of the oven such that the dew point of the gas on exiting the oven through the gas outlet is less than 0° C.;
- and
- making a quartz glass body out of at least part of the glass melt.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.