Book excerpt: The intensification of the production of silicate materials and products makes a de tailed theoretical study of the processes underlying their manufacture and service more and more urgent. The thermodynamic method is of great importance for studying chemical reac tions of silicate technology. Together with a study of the rate and mechanism of sub stance transfer, it permits obtaining necessary data for the efficient operation of technological processes. The progress of science in recent years has solved numerous problems in the field of the physical chemistry of silicates. The great progress in deciphering silicate structures, and working out methods of the synthesis of minerals and studying their properties must be mentioned. New methods of determining thermic constants have appeared. In future these methods should be more widely used for determining the heats of the silicate forma tion and related compounds in crystalline and vitreous state. This concerns in par ticular the system - CaO - Ab03 - Fe203 - Si0 - H 0 -which is of great impor 2 2 tance for the technology of cement and concrete, ceramics, refractories and glass.