Fabrication of precision glass shells by joining glass rods
AssigneeThe United States of America as represented by the Department of Energy
InventorsFrank D. Gac, Rodger D. Blake, Delbert E. Day, John S. Haggerty
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Abstract
A method for making uniform spherical shells. The present invention allows niform hollow spheres to be made by first making a void in a body of material. The material is heated so that the viscosity is sufficiently low so that the surface tension will transform the void into a bubble. The bubble is allowed to rise in the body until it is spherical. The excess material is removed from around the void to form a spherical shell with a uniform outside diameter.
Claims13
A method for producing uniform glass spheres, comprising the steps of;
- a. forming a cavity of known volume having its opening in one end of a first glass rod;
- b. joining said first glass rod with a second glass rod by abutting the end of the second glass rod with the end of the first glass rod having the cavity therein so that a void of known volume is formed;
- c. heating said glass rods to a temperature effective for surface tension about said void to form said void to a substantially spherical volume bubble;
- d. maintaining said temperature for a time sufficient for said bubble to rise within said glass rods;
- e. cooling said glass rods to suspend said glass bubble within said glass rods;
- and
- f. removing said glass from around the bubble to form a glass sphere.
A method of producing hollow spherical bodies comprising the steps of;
- a. forming a cavity of known volume in one face of a first rod;
- b. joining said first rod with a second rod by abutting the face of said first rod with the face of said second rod so that a void of known volume is formed;
- c. heating said rods to a temperature effective for surface tension about said void to form said void to a substantially spherical volume bubble;
- d. cooling said rod to suspend said bubble within said rod;
- and
- e. cutting away access material from around said bubble to form a spherical shell.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.