Zinc Oxide-Doped Antibacterial Soda Lime Glass Produced as a Glass Container

The aim of this study is to produce and characterize glass materials, which have an enhanced antibacterial property by the conventional melting method. Container glass compositions including different amounts of zinc oxide (ZnO) (5.0, 7.5, and 10.0%) were prepared and melted to be able to obtain the antibacterial glass. The Release and antibacterial tests, which were performed after the melting process, showed that the glass doped with 5% ZnO was the most appropriate composition according to test results (99.82% Escherichia coli inactivation) and its raw materials’ costs. Physical, thermal, and mechanical properties such as thermal expansion coefficient (86.1 × 10^-7/°C), density (2.523 g/cm³), refractive index (1.5191), hardness (596 kg/mm²), and elastic modulus (5.84 GPa) of the glass doped with 5% ZnO were determined, and the results showed that the obtained antibacterial glass sample is suitable to be used as a glass container. HighTemperature Melting Observation System studies were performed on the produced antibacterial glass composition, and it was found that the antibacterial glass can be produced in soda lime glass furnaces without changing any furnace design and production parameters. This antibacterial glass can be a remarkable product for the pharmaceutical and food industries.