Provided is a method for manufacturing bent optical fibers with which bent optical fibers having a quality difference effectively reduced can be manufactured without a reduction of the manufacturing yield. In the present embodiment, an elastic bending process and a heating process are alternately repeated. In the elastic bending process, a movement restricting member rotatable around a revolving shaft is rotated while an optical fiber having its leading end portion held by the movement restricting member is fed toward the revolving shaft to form bent portions at a part of the optical fiber. In the heating process, the optical fiber is irradiated with a laser beam to relieve stress at the bent portions. Thus, multiple bent portions at which the stress is relieved are formed in the optical fiber along the longitudinal direction of the optical fiber.

One embodiment of the disclosure relates to a method of cleaning silica-based soot or an article made of silica-based soot, the method comprising the step of treating silica-based soot or the article made of silica-based soot with at least one of the following compounds: (i) a mixture of CO and Cl.sub.2 in a carrier gas such that the total concentration of CO and Cl.sub.2 in the mixture is greater than 10% (by volume, in carrier gas) and the ratio of CO:Cl.sub.2 is between 0.25 and 5; (ii) CCl.sub.4 in a carrier gas, such that concentration CCl.sub.4 is greater than 1% (by volume, in carrier gas). Preferably, the treatment by CCl.sub.4 is performed at temperatures between 600 C., and 850 C. Preferably, the treatment with the CO and Cl mixture is performed at temperatures between 900 C. and 1200 C. The carrier gas may be, for example, He, Ar, N.sub.2, or the combination thereof.

Embodiments of the present invention pertain to antimicrobial glass compositions, glasses and articles. The articles include a glass, which may include a glass phase and a cuprite phase. In other embodiments, the glasses include as plurality of Cu.sup.1+ ions, a degradable phase including B2O3, P.sub.2O.sub.5 and K.sub.2O and a durable phase including SiO.sub.2. Other embodiments include glasses having a plurality of Cu.sup.1+ ions disposed on the surface of the glass and in the glass network and/or the glass matrix. The article may also include a polymer. The glasses and articles disclosed herein exhibit a 2 log reduction or greater in a concentration of at least one of Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and E. coli, under the EPA Test Method for Efficacy of Copper Alloy as a Sanitizer testing condition and under Modified JIS Z 2801 for Bacteria testing conditions.

Embodiments of the present invention pertain to antimicrobial glass compositions, glasses and articles. The articles include a glass, which may include a glass phase and a cuprite phase. In other embodiments, the glasses include as plurality of Cu.sup.1+ ions, a degradable phase including B2O3, P.sub.2O.sub.5 and K.sub.2O and a durable phase including SiO.sub.2. Other embodiments include glasses having a plurality of Cu.sup.1+ ions disposed on the surface of the glass and in the glass network and/or the glass matrix. The article may also include a polymer. The glasses and articles disclosed herein exhibit a 2 log reduction or greater in a concentration of at least one of Staphylococcus aureus, Enterobacter aerogenes, Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus, and E. coli, under the EPA Test Method for Efficacy of Copper Alloy as a Sanitizer testing condition and under Modified JIS Z 2801 for Bacteria testing conditions.

The present invention relates to a process for producing a boron containing glass, comprising melting raw materials including boron compounds in a submerged combustion melter (11), withdrawing flue gases from said melter and recovering heat from said flue gases in appropriate heat recovery equipment prior to release into the environment.

The present invention relates to a process for producing a boron containing glass, comprising melting raw materials including boron compounds in a submerged combustion melter (11), withdrawing flue gases from said melter and recovering heat from said flue gases in appropriate heat recovery equipment prior to release into the environment.

Mineral fibers have a chemical composition including the following constituents, as weight percentages: SiO.sub.2 30% to 50%, Al.sub.2O.sub.3 10% to 20%, CaO+MgO 20% to 35%, Na.sub.2O+K.sub.2O 1% to 10%, wherein the mineral fibers include a content of total iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, of from 5% to 15% and a redox, which corresponds to the weight ratio between the content of ferrous iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, and the total content of iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, of less than 0.6.

Mineral fibers have a chemical composition including the following constituents, as weight percentages: SiO.sub.2 30% to 50%, Al.sub.2O.sub.3 10% to 20%, CaO+MgO 20% to 35%, Na.sub.2O+K.sub.2O 1% to 10%, wherein the mineral fibers include a content of total iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, of from 5% to 15% and a redox, which corresponds to the weight ratio between the content of ferrous iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, and the total content of iron, expressed as Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, of less than 0.6.

A composition for producing a glass fiber, including the following components with corresponding percentage amounts by weight: 54.2-64% SiO.sub.2, 11-18% Al.sub.2O.sub.3, 20-25.5% CaO, 0.3-3.9% MgO, 0.1-2% of Na.sub.2O+K.sub.2O, 0.1-1.5% TiO.sub.2, and 0.1-1% total iron oxides including ferrous oxide (calculated as FeO). The weight percentage ratio C1=FeO/(iron oxidesFeO) is greater than or equal to 0.53. The total content of the above components in the composition is greater than 97%. The invention also provides a glass fiber produced using the composition and a composite material including the glass fiber.

Disclosed is an optical fiber probe for measuring parameters of a local two-phase flow, which is fixed to a probe holder of a two-phase flow measuring device and is installed in a flow path of a two-phase flow of a liquid phase fluid and a gas phase fluid. The optical fiber probe includes: a first tapered portion which is formed in a conical shape in which a diameter is gradually decreased at a certain ratio in an axial direction thereof to a point spaced a certain distance from a point thereof fixed to a probe holder, toward a leading end of the optical fiber probe; and a second tapered portion which is formed in a conical shape in which a diameter is gradually decreased at a greater ratio than that of the first tapered portion in an axial direction thereof from an end of the first tapered portion.