*Content courtesy of Window + Door

 

Advanced Window Technologies – The latest on “thin” glass.

The National Glass Association recently closed out its successful NGA Glass Conference: Tacoma with a presentation from Robert Hart, principal scientific engineering associate, Energy Technologies Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, on emerging high-performance technologies—specifically thin triples, and how there are more thin glass products entering the market, with multiple manufacturers and component and equipment suppliers.

While thin glass and interest in “skinny triples” is picking up and drawing the attention of both commercial and residential builders eager to install energy-efficient products in line with updated building energy codes and standards, there are roadblocks for thin triples, according to Hart. Namely, technical concerns (such as safe handling and compatibility with existing fabrication equipment), code and regulatory questions (mainly related to safety and building code applicability), and cost.

Related questions included:

How will energy flow be calculated in thin triples?
Can internal grids be used in thin triples?
How can borosilicate glass be evaluated along with soda lime thin glass?
What edge treatment will be required for thin glass breakage reduction?
How will waviness/movement due to wind loads in IG be handled, particularly as IG gets larger?

Better understanding thin glass.
Advisory group members decided that more research is needed to understand the use of thin glass in safety glazing. The breakage requirements of thin glass when tested per ANSI Z97.1 were raised as well as the need to better understand the mechanical behavior (edge conditions) for thin glass IGUs, the availability and durability of safety films, defection limitation testing and resistance to thermal stress, increased understanding of how thin triple units break as an assemble (not just monolithic), the possible limits of lamination paired to thin glass to still be considered safety glazing, and more.

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