FLEXIBLE "GLASS"

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 71, 20 September 1930, Page 28

FLEXIBLE "GLASS"

A BIG STEP FORWARD

CONTINENTAL PATENT

For some years past a great deal of research work has been carried on in certain Continental countries towards the production of a, clear, non-splinter-ing and comparatively flexible substance which shall take the place of glass.

The advantages attaching to a really satisfactory solution of this problem are so manifold and at the same time so obvious that they need hardly be stressed. Glass enters into the construction of almost every vehicle employed for human transport, and when an accident occurs glass is responsible for the greater proportion of injuries received by passengers. Patents for the new substance have been taken out, and it is reported that production in quantities on a commercial basis is to be undertaken. The price apparently will approximate that of plate glass. The new substance, of :; course, is not glass; Phenol and formaldehyde form the basis_ from which it is obtained, and the inventors claim a great advance over previous attempts to make synthetic flexible glass in the fact that not a particle of nrea, CO (NH2)2, enters into its composition, the latter compound having given rise to various troubles, particularly in the matter of homogeneity and in the length of time required for the material to set and dry before it could be used. The first operation in the manufacture of the substance consists of a cold mixing of phenol and formol; the process is, therefore, the exact opposite of that employed in the formation of synthetic resins at present in commercial use. The substance, it is said, can be supplied in varying degrees of hardness or elasticity. It is claimed to be completely dampproof, sea-waterproof, fireproof, and acid-proof, and, if necessary, could be used for pipe-work in a sulphuric acid factory. The patentees, however, are not yet satisfied with it as a substitute 'for plate glass in cars, as the surface hardness is not sufficient to make the material unseratchable. It is sufficiently rigid, however, to be used without framing, and hard enough to require some _ pressure to create a scratch. Speaking of a sample submitted to it, "The Motor" says the colour is not good, as there is a distinct yellow shade in it. The sample would not be satisfactory for a windscreen, but in the journal's opinion would be better as a side-screen than celluloid. Further experiments are being conducted by the patentees in order to evolve a product hard enough to take the place of plate glass as used in windscreens. The material can be made opaque and of any colour. The softer forms under the action of fire do not burn, and the substance stands up' to boiling water and also long exposure to seawater. Surface scratching can be removed by buffing. If boiled for a considerable time the product becomes soft, but Tegains its hardness when cool. Ancient Eome was not without its traffic problem, and Caesar issued an order prohibiting the passage of wagons through the central district for ten hours .after sunrise. Eome also had congestion in the tenements four and five stories high. Their height was later limited by Augustus, due either to the instability of their construction or the desire to decrease congestion, by persuading people to move outward from the centre of the city. More than 100,000 foreign cars pass the frontier of Switzerland during every travelling season. Special care has been taken to make the road signs as simple and intelligible to foreign motorists as possible. Eed signs mean that roads are totally or partially blocked, while the best roads are indicated with, blue signs. Boards with inserip-" tjons are no longer used, as many foreigners would not understand them, and a commonly accepted international terminology does not yet exist. It is understood that a London firm has obtained the contract for the construction of 250 miles of roads in various parts of Rumania, at a cost of more than £2,000,000. Only 750 foreign cars were imported to the United States last year, while 546,202 American cars were exported to various countries of the world. If the car has a tendency to swerve from its regular course of travel when the brakes are applied, brakes are not properly equalised and should be ad--3UBtod.