Pb0-Bi01.5-Ga01.5-based glasses are good candidates for optical applications, because some of their interesting characteristics, such as high refraction indices and high transmission in the ultraviolet (UV), visible (VIS), and infrared (IR) regions. A limited stage in the processing of these glasses is the corrosion that is caused by the melt in all currently used conventional crucibles, such as noble metals and Al203. The absorption of crucible material by the glass composition may reduce the transmission level, the cutoff in the UV-VIS, and IR regions, and the thermal stability. In this study, a Sn02 crucible has been tested for Pb0-Bi01.5-Ga01.5 molten glass. Optical and thermal analyses show, in some cases, advantages over the use of platinum and Al203 crucibles.
