Windows are an essential part of our homes, but they don’t just let in light and fresh air. Innovative windows can help reduce energy consumption, protect occupants, and contribute to sustainable design.
Float glass, for example, is an innovation that allows manufacturers to make flat window panes. Another modern innovation is safety or impact glass. It’s created by adhering a layer of polyvinyl butyral between two panes through heat and pressure.
Float Glass
Float glass is the base material that serves as the foundation for an assortment of flat window solutions. Unlike the plate glass that once dominated residential windows, which required extensive grinding and polishing, float glass is flawless, affordable and easy to process. Whether tinted or coated, it delivers a clean and sophisticated look to any space while also serving functional requirements such as light transmission, acoustic insulation and energy efficiency.
The float glass process was developed in the 1950s by British businessman Sir Alistair Pilkington. It involves floating a ribbon of hot, soda-lime-silica glass on top of a bath of molten tin. The tin’s lower density allows the glass to float naturally, creating a naturally smooth surface with no need for further grinding and polishing. After a controlled cooling and annealing process, the resulting sheet of flat glass is produced with uniform thicknesses between 0.4 and 25 mm.
Today, float glass accounts for about 95% of all flat glass production. Its pristine quality, durability and affordability have made it an integral component of the world’s most iconic buildings. It also serves as a building material that is highly versatile: it can be easily processed with glazing, laminated and thermal toughened to meet various architectural and consumer needs. It can be made to be translucent or abrasion-resistant, and it can be printed with various colors through enamels that melt and fuse permanently to the glass during the heat-treatment process.
Interlayer Films
An interlayer film is a crucial component of laminated glass. They are produced using a process known as extrusion. They are used in a wide range of applications, including automobile windshields and architectural glass. They are made from a combination of resin and plasticizer. To control the adhesion of the film to the glass, it is often treated with additives or fillers. The most common addition is silica, which increases the glass transition temperature of the film and improves its mechanical properties.
PVB interlayer films are used in many ways to enhance the performance of glazing. Their shatterproof function makes them perfect for car windshields, and they also provide safety and security for art glass, windows and other glazing. The PVB interlayer can even resist impact from a large hailstorm or powerful blasts.
Other innovations in window technology are also improving the functionality of glass. For example, some smart glass technologies dynamically alter their properties to manage sunlight and heat based on environmental stimuli or user requirements. This can reduce energy consumption and peak demand, and increase indoor comfort in real time. These technologies can be applied to commercial buildings, hospitals, and other facilities to achieve energy savings without sacrificing indoor quality. They can also help to prevent unauthorized access and enhance the security of sensitive data. Biometric authentication, such as fingerprint scanning or facial recognition, is another popular option.
Safety Glass
While most of us think about the aesthetics and comfort of windows, they also play an important role in security. Modern technologies are making windows even more resistant to threats without compromising transparency or aesthetics.
Float Glass
The most popular type of window, float glass is a method developed by Alastair Pilkington that, by the late 1950s, produced flatter and more uniform glass than had ever been possible. This innovation was the first step in creating energy-efficient windows.
Laminated Safety Glass
Laminated safety glass, which consists of two glass panes with a layer of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) in between, offers cost-effectiveness and strength up to five times higher than regular annealed glass. When it breaks, it shatters into small, rounded pieces that are less likely to cause injuries than sharp shards.
Energy-Efficient Glass
Many of today’s windows feature energy-efficient coatings. One of the most common is low-e coating, which reduces the amount of heat that passes through the glass into the home. This helps to lower cooling costs in summer and decreases the amount of energy needed to warm homes in winter. Other innovative coatings include argon and Krypton gas, which are used to increase thermal insulation in windows. They can also block certain UV rays that can be harmful to skin with long exposure, as well as contribute to the fading of rugs, furniture and wall hangings.
Smart Glass
There are various types of smart glass, but they all share a common feature: they can be switched between clear and opaque with the push of a button. This technology can be found in boats, cars and airplanes and is now making its way into residential and commercial buildings. It is a great option for people who want to control light, heat and glare in their spaces.
One type of smart glass is called electrochromic and changes color based on its temperature. The film in these windows contains nanoparticles that can change their tint in response to a small jolt of electricity. When the window is cool, it has a dark blue hue and is transparent when the temperatures rise. Thermochromic glass is another option that reacts to heat rather than electricity. It is often used in commercial buildings as a room divider and can reduce glare and sun heat while maintaining a view of the outdoors.
There are also PDLC (polymer dispersed liquid crystal) based glass that can change its transparency with the flick of a switch, or by being integrated into a building’s HVAC system. These windows can be made into any shape and size, and can be incorporated in walls, doors and partitions. They offer a great solution for offices and other business spaces that need to balance privacy with natural light and access to the outside world.