The present application relates to boron nitride nanotube (BNNT)-silicate glass composites and to methods of preparing such composites. The methods comprise mixing BNNTs that are coated with a glass former such as boron oxide with a silicate glass precursor to create a mixture; heating the mixture under conditions to obtain a molten silicate glass; and cooling the molten silicate glass under conditions to obtain the BNNT-silicate glass composite.

One aspect relates to a process for the preparation of a quartz glass body, including providing a silicon dioxide granulate, wherein the silicon dioxide granulate was made from pyrogenic silicon dioxide powder and the silicon dioxide granulate has a BET surface area in a range from 20 to 40 m.sup.2/g, making a glass melt out of silicon dioxide granulate in an oven and making a quartz glass body out of at least part of the glass melt. The oven has at least a first and a further chamber connected to one another via a passage. The temperature in the first chamber is lower than the temperature in the further chambers. On aspect relates to a quartz glass body which is obtainable by this process. One aspect relates to a light guide, an illuminant and a formed body, which are each obtainable by further processing of the quartz glass body.

A glass composition includes a glass frit and an electrostatic force reinforcing material including polymethylhydrosiloxane derivatives. The electrostatic force reinforcing material is represented by the following Formula. ##STR00001##

The invention relates to a glass production method comprising the production of a glass precursor mixture for a glass furnace, in which water, sand and sodium carbonate are mixed in weight proportions of between 0 and 5%, 40 and 65%, and greater than 0 and at most 25% respectively, and, after at least 10 minutes, calcium oxide is added in a weight proportion of between 1 and 20% of the total. The invention relates to a method for producing glass using a mixture containing, in particular, calcium oxide, and a glass melting furnace, said method and furnace using a burner with a flame directed at the glass batch.

A resin composition for inorganic molded article production use, which is provided with inorganic particles each containing amorphous SiO.sub.2 and a photocurable resin composition, in which the photocurable resin composition contains a photocurable resin precursor and a photopolymerization initiator, the content of the inorganic particles is 60% by mass or more with respect to the total amount of the photocurable resin composition and the inorganic particles and is 60% by mass or more with respect to the entire amount of the resin composition for inorganic molded article production use, and the viscosity of the composition for inorganic molded article production use is 10000 mPa.Math.s or less.

One aspect relates to a process for the preparation of a quartz glass body including: i.) providing a silicon dioxide granulate, ii.) making a first glass melt out of the silicon dioxide granulate, iii.) making a glass product out of at least one part of the glass melt, iv.) reducing the size of the glass product to obtain a quartz glass grain, v.) making a further glass melt from the quartz glass grain and vi.) making a quartz glass body out of at least one part of the further glass melt. Furthermore, one aspect relates to a quartz glass body obtainable by this process. Furthermore, one aspect relates to a reactor, which is obtainable by further processing of the quartz glass body.

The invention relates to a process for the preparation of a glass-ceramic blank for dental purposes with lithium silicate as crystal phase, in which lithium silicate blanks that are no longer required and in particular residues thereof are used as starting material and which allows the production of a homogeneous starting glass within a short time.

In a method for producing an expanded-glass granular material, starting materials containing glass powder, water glass, at least one blowing agent, and metakaolin, are mixed in order to form a homogeneous slurry. The slurry is granulated to form raw granular-material particles, which are foamed at a baking temperature between 780 C. and 950 C. in order to form expanded-glass granular-material particles. The expanded-glass granular material has a long-term water absorption of less than 25 volume percent when the expanded-glass granular material is exposed to water for a time period of 21 days.

A resin composition for inorganic molded article production use, which is provided with inorganic particles each containing amorphous SiO.sub.2 and a photocurable resin composition, in which the photocurable resin composition contains a photocurable resin precursor and a photopolymerization initiator, the content of the inorganic particles is 60% by mass or more with respect to the total amount of the photocurable resin composition and the inorganic particles and is 60% by mass or more with respect to the entire amount of the resin composition for inorganic molded article production use, and the viscosity of the composition for inorganic molded article production use is 10000 mPa.Math.s or less.

Glass batch materials and processes for preparing and melting structured pellets of glass batch materials to produce molten glass. A structured pellet of glass batch materials may include a core and a shell surrounding the core. The core may include a mixture of glass-forming materials and the shell may include a thermally-activated material. The thermally-activated material may be formulated to undergo an exothermic chemical reaction when heated to a temperature at or above a threshold temperature such that heat is transferred from the shell to the mixture of glass-forming materials in the core.