Blown Glass Material Calculator
Glass batch weight from piece dimensions and wall thickness.
Inputs
%
Results
Total batch weight (kg)
5.88
Silica sand (kg)2.54
Soda ash (kg)0.81
Limestone (kg)0.66
Dolomite (kg)0.32
Feldspar (kg)0.06
Cullet (kg)1.5
Gather weight per piece (g)509.2
Melting energy (kWh)6.9
Batch To Glass Ratio1.18%
How to Use This Calculator
- Enter Finished Glass Per Piece in kg and the Number of Pieces to produce.
- Enter the Cullet (recycled glass) percentage to reduce raw material needs and energy consumption.
- Enter Piece Diameter and Wall Thickness in mm for geometry-based calculations.
- Review Total Batch Weight and individual ingredient quantities: silica sand, soda ash, limestone, and dolomite.
- Check Melting Energy in kWh and Gather Weight Per Piece to plan furnace operation and blowing sessions.
How the result changes with Finished glass per piece (kg)
| Finished glass per piece (kg) | Total batch weight (kg) |
|---|---|
| 100 | 1,176.32 |
| 350 | 4,117.11 |
| 650 | 7,646.05 |
| 900 | 10,586.84 |
What each input means
- Finished glass per piece (kg)
- Weight of finished glass per piece in kg.
- Number of pieces
- How many pieces to produce.
- Cullet (recycled) %
- Percentage of recycled glass (cullet) in the batch. Saves energy and raw materials.
- Piece diameter (mm)
- Approximate outer diameter of the blown piece.
- Wall thickness (mm)
- Target wall thickness of the blown piece.
What each result means
- Total batch weight (kg)
- Total raw materials needed including cullet.
- Silica sand (kg)
- Sand (SiO2 source) required for batch.
- Soda ash (kg)
- Na2CO3 (flux) required.
- Limestone (kg)
- CaCO3 (stabilizer) required.
- Dolomite (kg)
- CaMg(CO3)2 for MgO content.
- Feldspar (kg)
- Al2O3 source for durability.
- Cullet (kg)
- Recycled glass to include in batch.
- Gather weight per piece (g)
- Approximate glass gather for one blown piece.
- Melting energy (kWh)
- Estimated energy to melt the entire batch (~5 MJ/kg).
How this is calculated
Worked example, using the default values
- Identify Input Parameters4 parametersFinished glass per piece (kg) = 0.5, Number of pieces = 10, Cullet (recycled) % = 30, Piece diameter (mm) = 150 = 5 input(s) provided
- Calculate Total batch weightTotal batch weight = sandKg + sodaAshKg + limestoneKg + dolomiteKg + feldsparKg + fromCulletKg5.88 = 5.88
- Calculate Silica sandSilica sand = fromRawBatchKg * silicaPct * 1.02.54 = 2.54
- Calculate Soda ashSoda ash = fromRawBatchKg * sodaPct * 1.710.81 = 0.81
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