General method for calculating the properties of oxide glasses and glass forming melts from their composition and temperature

A new method for calculating various properties of glasses and glass forming melts has been proposed. The method covers such properties as viscosity and standard points, density, heat capacity and enthalpy, refractive index and its dispersion, coefficient of thermal expansion, surface tension, elastic moduli, and ultrasonic velocities. Temperature dependences of the properties (except for elastic and acoustic properties) could also be calculated. The above mentioned properties could be calculated for glasses and glass forming melts belonging to various oxide systems: 64 oxides can be included in the calculation. The method is based on assuming chemical equilibria between structural groups, which are found in glass forming melts. The results of calculations have been compared with the experimental data for properties of about 100 000 glasses and glass forming melts using the MDL SciGlass information system. The results of the comparison show that the proposed method allows the prediction of properties with a precision as high, on the whole, as the best known methods.