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Glass

Key Stage 1

Meaning

This glass has broken because it is firm so when it was hit it broke instead of bending.

Glass is a hard, smooth, shiny, transparent, firm and stiff material. Glasses are made of the material glass.

Singular Noun: Glass
Plural Noun: Glass
Adjective: Glassy

About Glass

We use glass to make windows because it is transparent. We also use glass to make drinking glasses because it is hard, firm and waterproof.

Key Stage 2

Meaning

Glass is a hard, brittle and transparent solid material made form melted sand.

Key Stage 3

Meaning

Glass is a hard, brittle and transparent solid (at room temperature) made from Silicon Dioxide.

About Glass

Glass is made by melting sand and allowing it to freeze into a new shape.
Glass is used for windows because it is transparent.
Glass is brittle which means it doesn't not change shape easily and will break before bending.
Glass is a solid but is unusual because the particles are not in a regular order.

Key Stage 4

Meaning

Glass is a Giant Covalent Structure made from Silicon Dioxide.

About Glass

Glass is an amorphous solid which has particles in fixed positions, but not in a regular arrangement.

Applications and Properties

Application Properties
Windows Transparent - So light can pass through.

Hard - So it doesn't get scratched.

Strong - So it does not change shape under a force.

Lenses Transparent - So light can pass through.

Hard - So it doesn't get scratched.

Strong - So it does not change shape under a force.

Refractive Index of 1.3 - To refract light.

Light Bulbs Transparent - So light can pass through.

Hard - So it doesn't get scratched.

References

AQA

Glass, page 226, GCSE Chemistry; Third Edition, Oxford University Press, AQA
Glass, page 264, GCSE Chemistry, Hodder, AQA
Glass, page 280, GCSE Chemistry, CGP, AQA

Edexcel

Glass, page 202, GCSE Chemistry, Pearson, Edexcel

OCR

Glass, pages 220-222, 227, Gateway GCSE Chemistry, Oxford, OCR
Glass, pages 85, 86, Gateway GCSE Chemistry; The Revision Guide, CGP, OCR