Up: Insulators

Purple Insulator Gallery Home  > Insulators  > Purple

Gallery: 5 of 21

Purple coloring in insulators is caused by the addition of manganese, a de-colorizer originally used to remove the green or aqua cast caused by the iron inevitably found in batch sand (all glass colorants are metals or metal oxides). After exposure to radiation-- either natural solar or artificial-- the manganese ionizes to a purple form; the more manganese, the darker the purple eventually becomes. If too much manganese is added initially, the glass starts out purple, then turns darker still, hence "royal purple". The manganese used in insulator production once came mostly from Germany. When World War I broke out, the supply was cut off, and selenium was used instead. Selenium glass also "solarizes", but turns a straw color.

Ice Purple		Light Purple		Medium Purple

Purple		Dark Purple

Royal Purple		Fizzy Purple		S.C.A.