Abstract: A method for processing intumescent material which forms a layer of a transparent fire-screening panel, which method includes forming a layer containing an aqueous solution of intumescent material on a cyclically moving support, removing water from the layer of material on the support by applying heat, removing the intumescent layer from the support within one cycle of its application thereto in such a manner that the layer becomes reworked or broken, and incorporating the removed intumescent material into a glazing panel.

Abstract: Fire screening glazing panels comprise at least one layer 2, 6 of intumescent material such as hydrated sodium silicate sandwiched between flat vitreous sheets 1, 3, 7.To promote fire resistance in a simple and economical way, at least one (and preferably only one) vitreous sheet 1 has a thickness of 6 mm or more, preferably from 7 to 10 mm. The or each other vitreous sheet 3, 7 has a preferred thickness range of 2.5 to 4 mm. The thicker sheet 1 is best located in the interior of a panel with three or more vitreous sheets and it or any other vitreous sheet may be made of boro-silicate or other low expansion or high softening point vitreous material.

Abstract: A fire-screening glazing panel including a plurality of sheets of vitreous material and at least two spaced layers of intumescent material each sandwiched between sheets of the vitreous material. At least two of the plurality of vitreous sheets are internal vitreous sheets sandwiched between the at least two intumescent layers, and the at least two internal vitreous sheets are laminated together without intervening intumescent material.

Abstract: When water is removed from a body of wet intumescent material by heating it for a period of time during which water is allowed to evaporate, microbubbles tend to form in the resulting body during the later stages of drying and/or during aging of the body.In order to reduce this tendency, during at least a part of the heating period there is introduced into the atmosphere in contact with the intumescent material one or more gases which is less soluble in the intumescent material than is oxygen, and/or one or more gases which is the vapor phase of a solvent for the body. The most preferred solvent vapor is steam, and preferred less soluble gases include SF.sub.6, CF.sub.4, N.sub.2 and cyclohexane.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a fire-screening glazing panel comprising at least one layer of intumescent material 15 sandwiched between two structural plies 13, 14 of the panel comprises forming the layer and securing the plies together.In order to avoid or reduce problems associated with drying the layer 15, an assembly is made in which the structural plies 13, 14 sandwich a layer 15 of intumescent material which is constituted by one or more materials of which at least the greater part by volume is in granular form.In a second aspect, in order to facilitate degassing of the intumescent layer, such layer 15 contains intumescent material of which at least part is in the form of grains, and the intumescent material is subjected to suction at the edges of the assembly (e.g. using a vacuum pump 10 connected to an edge sealing tube 12) in a degassing step and the assembly is subjected to heat (e.g. by heaters 7,8) and/or pressure conditions (e.g.

Abstract: A process for forming a solid layer of intumescent material from a fluid material which comprises the steps of pouring the fluid material onto a mold and evaporating the liquid from the fluid material while the fluid material is contained within a chamber offering a predetermined restraint to the escape of vapor from the chamber to the ambient atmosphere.

Abstract: A light-transmitting fire screening panel comprising at least one sheet of glass and at least one layer of intumescent material, the improvement which comprises utilizing in the layer a hydrated alkali metal silicate as intumescent material and one or more adjuvants selected from: urea, polyhydric alcohol (including glycerine, ethylene glycol and sorbitol), monosaccharide (including glucose), polysaccharide (including starch), sodium phosphate, sodium aluminate, aluminum phosphate, borax, boric acid and colloidal silica.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a laminated, light-transmitting fire-screening panel comprising at least one solid layer of intumescent material sandwiched between two structural plies without the use of a sheet of plastic material to effect the bonding, comprising the steps of forming a stratum from an intumescent material assembling the stratum and a first structural ply to an inorganic face of a pane comprising a second structural ply so that the stratum is in contact with the inorganic face and sandwiched between the structural plies, enveloping at least the edges of the sandwich assembly in such manner as to define a space around the edges in which sub-atmospheric pressure can be created for subjecting the inter-ply space to suction at the edges, and subjecting the sandwich assembly to a treatment in which at least one of the main external faces of the sandwich assembly is exposed to sub-atmospheric environmental pressure while the sandwich assembly is exposed to heat in a treatment chamber and the inter-ply s

Abstract: A laminated light-transmitting fire-screening panel comprising two outer plies and at least one layer of intumescent material sandwiched between the outer plies of the panel, the arrangement being such that the layer occupies an area which is less than the area of at least one of the outer plies so as to define therewith a recess leading along at least a portion of the edge of the panel.

Abstract: An impact resistant panel composed of a group of at least three sheets of vitreous material bonded together via intervening layers of plastic material. According to one form of construction, the group includes a set of consecutive vitreous sheets of at least three different thicknesses which are arranged in order of thickness, and at least the first sheet, taken in the direction from the highest sheet thickness end of the set, is tempered. According to a second form of construction, the group includes a set of consecutive sheets of at least two different thicknesses arranged in order of thickness and at least two of the plastic layers are of different thicknesses and are arranged so that one of the layers having the smallest thickness is nearer the first sheet, taken in the direction from the thickest sheet, than is any other layer.