Bullet-resistant, or bulletproof glass looks exactly the same as regular glass, but it saves lives. It can stop one or multiple rounds of bullets depending on the thickness of the glass and the weapon used to fire the bullet. So how does it work?
There are various ways to make bullet-resistant glass, but essentially, it is made by layering a piece of special polycarbonate between pieces of ordinary glass. This process is called lamination. The special polycarbonate goes by many names - Armormax, Makroclear, Cyrolon, Lexan, or Tuffak - and is a strong, transparent plastic that is particularly resistant to penetration. As the bullet-resistant glass gets thicker, it also gets stronger. The thickness can range anywhere from 7mm to 76mm. Companies determine the thickness based on what it will be used for. For example, bullet-resistant glass in normal cars would be around 10mm thick, but if you wanted bullet-resistant glass in military vehicles, it would probably range in the higher 50mm to 70mm range.
Once the polycarbonate has been layered between two pieces of glass, it is cooked at a much higher pressure in an autoclave. An autoclave is kind of an industrial pressure cooker. It is cooked at 300 degrees Fahrenheit and at a pressure that is up to 13-to-14 times the normal atmospheric pressure. The reasoning behind this process is to ensure that there will be no air bubbles in the final product as this weakens the overall strength of the glass.
Once the glass has undergone this process, inspected, and tested, it is sent out to its respective buyer. If you want to see a bullet-resistant glass stop a real bullet, click this link here. If you’re interested in bullet-resistant glass for your business, learn more on about our business services page.