Glassblowing Studio:
Capabilities

Argonne scientists come to the Glassblowing Studio for a wide range of glassware — everything from specialized, tiny optical cells, to apparatus and vessels as large as 18 inches in diameter. Joe Gregar, Argonne's Master Glassblower, helps researchers from design through fabrication to installation in their labs.

The studio can accommodate a range of jobs, from sophisticated one-of-a-kind prototypes to mid-scale production runs.

The studio seldom sends work outside to be fabricated; it is solely in control of the quality assurance of its products.

Glass Types

The studio has the ability to construct and design all apparatus from different types of glass including:

• Soft glasses,
• Borosilicate glasses,
• Aluminosilicate glasses, and
• Quartz.

Top-of-the-line Equipment

Glassblowing tools include:

• A variety of glass lathes to accommodate fabrication of many sizes of glassware;
• Specialty annealing ovens for both borosilicate and quartz apparatus;
• A highly specialized vertical glass lathe for jobs that cannot be fabricated in the conventional horizontal manner; and
• Up-to-date cutting and grinding equipment using high quality diamond cutting wheels and diamond core drilling equipment.

The studio also maintains an extensive inventory of the latest products and supplies to ensure a quick response to researcher requests.

More

• Glassblowing Studio Brochure (1.28 MB pdf)

July 2010