Observations on the Thermal Expansion of Crystalline and Glassy Substances

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Abstract
The importance of the reversible thermal expansion of inorganic substances is recognized by metallurgists, glass technologists, and ceramists who deal with manufactured products that are subjected to temperature cycles in service. The temperature interval involved may be small, as in dental porcelain, or large, as in open‐hearth refractory brick. In spite of the major influence of this property on the practical service life of industrial products, very few broad principles have been advanced regarding the effect of crystal structure on the reversible thermal expansion of pure compounds. In general, close‐packed crystalline structures of the sodium chloride or spinel type, which have simple geometrical arrangements, seem to have high expansions. Less‐symmetrical structures apparently have a lower expansion, for example, the moderately refractory materials zircon, beryl, beta‐spodumene, and willemite.

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