ForMatter/Materials/composite/Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester)
mat_fiberglass_e_glass

Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester)

polymer-matrix composite, oriented continuous fiber · GFRP, glass-reinforced plastic, E-glass composite, fibreglass
highlast updated 2026-04-26
metallic 0.00
hue shift +0°

Glass filaments woven into cloth and bonded with epoxy or polyester resin. Less stiff than carbon, much cheaper, easier to work, and the dominant composite of boat hulls, surfboards, swimming pools, wind-turbine blades. The first composite most students touch.

E-glass (electrical-grade alumina-borosilicate glass) drawn into 5–25 µm filaments, woven, and bonded with thermoset matrix (polyester for marine, epoxy for higher performance). Cheaper than carbon by an order of magnitude, with about 40% the modulus. Polyester matrix carries styrene fume during cure; epoxy is cleaner but slower.

mechanical

  • fiber_tensile_strength_mpa3450
  • fiber_modulus_gpa72
  • lamina_tensile_strength_mpa_uni1100
  • lamina_modulus_gpa_uni39
  • density_kg_m32000
source: Owens Corning E-glass datasheet; ACP Composites

thermal

  • service_max_c200
  • thermal_conductivity_w_mk_in_plane0.4

Sustainability

  • embodied carbon kg co2e per kg8.1
  • sourceEditorial estimate from ICE / Granta CES EduPack class databases — industry mean, with cradle-to-gate boundary unless otherwise noted. Embodied carbon for any specific product depends on supplier mix, recycled content, and energy grid; verify against a primary source before using these numbers in a sustainability claim.
  • recyclabilitylow — same thermoset-matrix limitation as CFRP; pyrolysis recovers glass at degraded properties; cement-kiln co-processing is the most common end-of-life path for wind turbine blades
  • biodegradableFalse
  • certifications—
visual
white to translucent in unpigmented form, takes pigment in gel-coat layer
tactile
smooth on gel-coated face, fibrous on cut edge — itches under arm hair
weight perception
moderate
acoustic
soft thock; less ring than carbon

PBR starter values

Principled BSDF defaults derived from the sphere fibrous finish. Reasonable seed for Blender, Substance, Keyshot, Rhino — tune per material.

# finish:      fibrous
albedo        #d8c890
metallic      0.00
roughness     0.32
ior           1.45
transmission  0.00
clearcoat     0.55
sheen         0.10
anisotropic   0.40
copy as JSON 
{
  "albedo": "#d8c890",
  "metallic": 0.0,
  "roughness": 0.32,
  "ior": 1.45,
  "transmission": 0.0,
  "clearcoat": 0.55,
  "sheen": 0.1,
  "anisotropic": 0.4
}
Blender 4.x Python 
# Blender 4.x — Principled BSDF
# Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester) · finish: fibrous
import bpy
mat = bpy.data.materials.new(name="mat_fiberglass_e_glass")
mat.use_nodes = True
bsdf = mat.node_tree.nodes["Principled BSDF"]
bsdf.inputs["Base Color"].default_value         = (0.6867, 0.5776, 0.2789, 1.0)
bsdf.inputs["Metallic"].default_value           = 0.000
bsdf.inputs["Roughness"].default_value          = 0.320
bsdf.inputs["IOR"].default_value                = 1.450
bsdf.inputs["Transmission Weight"].default_value = 0.000
bsdf.inputs["Coat Weight"].default_value        = 0.550
bsdf.inputs["Sheen Weight"].default_value       = 0.100
bsdf.inputs["Anisotropic"].default_value        = 0.400
KeyShot Python (lux) 
# KeyShot 11+ — lux Python API, Generic material
# Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester) · finish: fibrous
# Run from Window → Scripting Console
import lux
mat = lux.createMaterial(name="mat_fiberglass_e_glass", materialType="Generic")
mat.setProperty("diffuse",      (216, 200, 144))   # 8-bit sRGB
mat.setProperty("metallic",     0.000)
mat.setProperty("roughness",    0.320)
mat.setProperty("indexOfRefraction", 1.450)
mat.setProperty("transparency", 0.000)
mat.setProperty("coatingWeight", 0.550)
Substance pbrMetalRough 
{
  "_format": "Substance Designer / Painter \u2014 pbrMetalRough constants",
  "_about": "Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester) \u00b7 finish: fibrous",
  "baseColor": {
    "r": 0.6867,
    "g": 0.5776,
    "b": 0.2789
  },
  "metallic": 0.0,
  "roughness": 0.32,
  "ior": 1.45,
  "opacity": 1.0,
  "anisotropyLevel": 0.4,
  "_notes": "Channels listed are the standard Substance pbrMetalRough output. Drop into a Uniform Color node per channel, or as the constant input on a layered stack."
}
glTF 2.0 Metallic-Roughness 
{
  "asset": {
    "version": "2.0",
    "generator": "ForMatter"
  },
  "materials": [
    {
      "name": "mat_fiberglass_e_glass",
      "pbrMetallicRoughness": {
        "baseColorFactor": [
          0.6867,
          0.5776,
          0.2789,
          1.0
        ],
        "metallicFactor": 0.0,
        "roughnessFactor": 0.32
      },
      "extensions": {
        "KHR_materials_ior": {
          "ior": 1.45
        },
        "KHR_materials_clearcoat": {
          "clearcoatFactor": 0.55
        },
        "KHR_materials_sheen": {
          "sheenColorFactor": [
            1.0,
            1.0,
            1.0
          ],
          "sheenRoughnessFactor": 0.1
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}
USD Preview Surface 
# USD Preview Surface — UsdShade.MaterialLook prim attributes
# Fiberglass (E-Glass, in epoxy or polyester) · finish: fibrous
def Material "mat_fiberglass_e_glass" {
    token outputs:surface.connect = </mat_fiberglass_e_glass/PreviewSurface.outputs:surface>

    def Shader "PreviewSurface" {
        uniform token info:id = "UsdPreviewSurface"
        color3f inputs:diffuseColor = (0.6867, 0.5776, 0.2789)
        float   inputs:metallic     = 0.000
        float   inputs:roughness    = 0.320
        float   inputs:ior          = 1.450
        float   inputs:opacity      = 1.000
        float   inputs:clearcoat    = 0.550
        token   outputs:surface
    }
}
↓ download glTF material
ProcessCarbon-Fiber Layup · CNC Milling · Adhesive Bonding · Water-Jet Cutting
Used inDrone Chassis
Substitutes
Carbon Fiber (T700, in epoxy)

Citations