GLASS

1
DOORS &
WINDOWS

2
CURTAIN
WALLS &
SKYLIGHTS

3
 GLASS
BRICKS/BLOCKS

STAIRCASE
(LOAD BEARING)

4
GLASS HOUSE
(NON-LOAD BEARING)

5
LOAD BEARING GLASS WALLS AT THE REINBACH PAVILION,
GERMANY

Source:
(http://www.erco.com/guide/o
utdoor-lighting/recessed-
floor-luminaires-1815/
images/eur-erco-recessed-
floor-luminaires-applic-1-
2.jpg?c=2014-04-09_10-49-28)
6
 INTRODUCTION
• An amorphous (non-crystalline) substance.
• Hard, brittle, transparent or translucent material.
• Mostly used as glazing in doors, windows & curtain walls.
• Glass are basically alkali-lime silicate or alkali-lead silicate.
• Tensile Strength: 30-60 N/mm2
• Compressive Strength: 700-1000 N/mm2
• Modulus of Elasticity: 0.45 × 105 to 0.8 × 105 N/mm2
• Major Drawback : Brittleness
7
 HISTORY
• 5000 BCE glass first made in Egypt, for jewelry
• 650 BCE first written instructions for making glass
• 6th century, glass windows used in Hagia Sophia (Turkey) and, later, in churches north of the Alps
• 10th Century - First descriptions of cylinder glass (France)
• Late 19th century glass sheets were widely available throughout Europe.
• 1907 German patent for 'concrete-glass' construction using glass blocks embedded in reinforced concrete
• 1910 'safety glass', developed by French chemist, Benedictus, for use in car windscreens; this laminated glass
was made by sandwiching a film of transparent Celluloid between two sheets of glass.
• 1922 Griffith studies strength of glass fibres
• 1930 toughened glass developed by St. Gobain, initially for car windscreens; prestressing is achieved by cooling
quickly the outer surface of hot glass using air jets; as the entire glass section cools, so the outer surface is drawn
into compression by the inner core acting in tension.
• After 1973, there have been many developments made to control passage of radiation through glass using
additives and coatings both passive and active.
• Glass façade buildings! 8
 CONSTITUENTS
• Silica (In form of pure quartz, crushed sandstone & pulverized flint)
• Lime (In form of limestone, chalk or pure marble)
• Soda or potash

These materials are fused together over 1000 oC. Oxides of iron, lead and borax
are added to modify hardness, colour etc.

9
 FUNCTIONS OF CONSTITUENTS
• SILICA: Basic constituent of Glass
• LIME: Makes the glass fluid and suitable for blowing, drawing, rolling, pressing
or spinning. It also imparts durability and toughness to glass.
• SODA: Accelerator for fusion of glass. Brings down the melting point of silica
from 1710 oC to about 800 oC .
• POTASH: Makes glass infusible and fire resistant.
• LEAD OXIDE: Imparts colour, brightness and shine.
• CULLETS: These are broken glass added to act as flux to prevent loss of alkali
by volatilisation during glass forming. It also helps in lowering the melting
temperature. 10
 PECULIAR PROPERTIES OF GLASS
• Glass does not have definite melting point. When heated, it first softens so that it
can be bent. Further heating, brings it to the point when it becomes thick, syrupy
liquid, a state in which it can be worked.

• Above a certain temp. called devitrification temperature, glass can be kept in a

liquid condition without any change occurring. But if it is kept just below that
temp. for any length of time, crystallization or vitrification occurs.

11
 CLASSIFICATION OF GLASS
• Based on its Constituents
Soda Lime Glass, Lead Glass, Boro-Silicate Glass

• Based on Applications
Sheet Glass, Plate Glass, Tempered Glass, Wired Glass, Obscured
Glass, Laminated Glass, Insulating Glass, Heat Absorbing Glass,
Ground Glass, Colored Glass, Opal Glass, Enamel Glass, Optical
Glass

12
 BASED ON APPLICATION
SHEET GLASS
•Used for glazing doors, windows and partition.
•Obtained by blowing molten glass into shape of cylinder. The end of the cylinder
so produced are cut away and the cylinder is flattened over a plane tray.
•It is available in the thickness (IS 2835) of 2, 2.5, 3, 4, 5, 5.5 and 6.5 mm and up
to 1750 × 1100 mm size and is classified as:

TYPE USES
Ordinary glazing quality General Engineering purpose
Selected glazing quality Class Works
Special selected quality Superior quality works such as show cases and cabinets
Greenhouse Quality Intended for greenhouse glazing.

•The waviness of glass is tested according to IS 2835 13

 BASED ON APPLICATION
PLATE GLASS
•Used for all engineering purposes and is superior to sheet glass.
•It differs from a sheet glass in that it has a parallel distortion-free surface obtained
by grinding or floating process.
•Produced by pouring the molten glass in casting tables and levelling it to a an
uniform thickness. Both the glass surfaces are then ground, smoothened and
polished.
•Available in thickness of 3 to 32 mm and sizes up to 2750 × 900 mm.
•It is classified as:

TYPE USES
Ground glass quality Showcases, cabinets, counters, shop fronts, etc.
Selected glazing quality Making mirrors
Special selected quality High class works wind screen of vehicles
14
 PLATE GLASS

http://www.rpdinc.com/2638-
large/x-ray-plate-glass-leaded- http://www.hhpvglass.com/Content/File_Img/
glass.jpgv S_Product/2014-09-
10/201409101444012160523.jpg
15
 BASED ON APPLICATION
TEMPERED GLASS
•Made from plate glass by reheating and sudden cooling. As a result the outer surface are
under high compressive stress, while the centre portion remains in tension. This produces
a condition that is highly resistant to breakage.
•Resists bending stress better than plate glass and is around 3-5 times stronger.
•Has higher resistance against fracture due to strain and thermal shock.
•Used extensively in sports arenas, sliding doors and curtain walls.
•Tempered glass are tested for resistance to shock and fragmentation test according to IS
2553 Part-I.
16
http://www.reliancehome.com/wp-content/
uploads/sliding-glass-door4.jpg

http://img.archiexpo.com/images_ae/photo-g/glass-curtain-
wall-aluminum-85878-4616781.jpg
Curtain Walls
Sliding Door 17
18
 BASED ON APPLICATION
WIRED GLASS
•Produced by embedding wire nets 0.46 to 0.56 mm into the center of sheet glass
during casting.
•Minimum thickness of wired glass is 6 mm.
•The wire greatly increases the resistance to shattering through impact and when
broken it does not fall into pieces.
•It has higher melting point than ordinary glass.
•It is used in fire resisting doors and windows due to its flame-proofness
characteristics.
•It is also used in skylights and roofs.

19
Crack Pattern in Wired Glass
(Source:
http://www.rgbstock.com/bigphoto/mhYzbzS/A+crac
ked+security+window+1)

Wired Glass in Skylights

(Source:
20
http://www.generalglass-ncme.com/xinyu/images/Wire
 BASED ON APPLICATION
OBSCURED GLASS
•Also known as patterned glass.
•Made comparatively opaque to sunlight.
•Classified as:
• Frosted Glass: Produced by subjecting the polished face if the glass to a
sand blast which grinds off the surface. It can also be produced by etching on
glass by hydrofluoric acid.

• Rolled Glass: Has a series of waves of desired pattern on the surface and is
known as figured rolled glass (IS 5437).

• Ribbed Glass: A series of triangular ribs are produced in the glass during
casting. 21
Figured rolled
Glass

Frosted Glass

Ribbed Glass
22
 BASED ON APPLICATION
LAMINATED GLASS
•Made by sandwiching a thin, tough layer of polyvinyl butyral resin (transparent plastic)
between two or more layers of plate or sheet glass.

•Also known as safety glass.

•It is tested for its strength according to IS 2553 Part-I

•Heat proof glass: Two or more glass plates are sandwiched by a tinted plastic inner
layer. It provides high resistance to heat and glare. By increasing the thickness of plastic
layer the glass can be made more sound resistant.

•Bullet proof glass: Produced by placing vinyl plastic and glass in several alternate layers
and pressing them with outer layers of glass. It is used in banks, jewelry stores and 23display
(Source:
https://matterchatter.files.
wordpress.com/2012/04/b
ulletpassing.jpg) 24
 BASED ON APPLICATION
INSULATING GLASS
•Composed of two glass plates separated by an air space and joined around the
edges to produce a hermatically sealed unit.

•Three methods of sealing are used:

• A rectangular metal spacer is sealed to the glass and covered by stainless steel frame. The
gap contains a layer of 6-13 mm thick dehydrated air.
• Strip of lead sealed to edges of glass
• Electrically fusing all-glass edges.

•These reduce the heat transmission by 30-60%

25
 All-glass Seal
(Source: Materials of Construction
by R.C. Smith)

Cutaway View of Insulating Glass

(Source:http://glassdoctor.com/sites/default/files/
new_igu_illustration-01.jpg)
Lead Sealed Unit
(Source: Materials of Construction by
R.C. Smith)

26
27
 ARCHITECTURAL PROPERTIES OF GLASS
• Proper choice of size and orientation of windows and glazing can help in
reducing the energy consumption to an extent of 5-8%* in an building (energy is
consumed in HVAC system).

• Design of glazing involves a tradeoff between energy issue (heat gain/loss) and
non-energy issue (day-lighting)

• Various Parameters that should be considered for glazing design are:

• R-value
• U-Value
• Solar Heat Gain Coefficient
• Visual Transmittance
28
 Thermal Resistance (R-VALUE)

• Indicates the resistance to heat flow.

• Higher the R-value, the greater is the insulating effectiveness.
• R-value depends on the type of material, its thickness and its density.
• R-value is the reciprocal of the time rate of heat flow through a unit area
induced by a unit temperature difference between two defined surfaces of
material or construction under steady-state conditions.
• R-value is expressed in m² K/W.

29
 Thermal Transmittance (U-VALUE)

• It is the heat transmission in unit time through unit area of a material

construction and the boundary air films, induced by unit temperature difference
between the environments on each side.
• U-value is expressed in W/m2 K.
• The relationship between U-factor and R-value is not always exactly the inverse
and therefore R-value cannot be precisely extrapolated for a material of different
thickness.
• However, assuming an inverse relationship may be adequate.
30
 SOLAR HEAT GAIN COEFFICIENT (SHGC)
• Measure of a window's ability to admit solar energy.
• SHGC is the amount of solar gain a window allows, divided by the
amount of solar energy available at its outside surface.
• Its a number between zero (solid wall) and one (open window).
• The higher the SHGC, the better the window will perform as a solar
collector.

31
Ways to modify windows to enhance their performance include:
•Adding a second or third layer of glass, which can lower the U-value or
increase the R-value, while maintaining a large SHGC.

•Additional layers of glass also permit thin, low emissivity (low-e)

coatings to be applied. Low-e coatings still allow solar gain (short
wavelength radiation) and they help retain heat by reducing long wave
(infrared) radiation losses. This is very helpful from a passive solar
heating point of view.

•There are reflective coatings that block unwanted solar gain (reduce the
SHGC) to reduce the cooling load.

32
 VISIBLE LIGHT TRANSMITTANCE (VT)

• Measures the visible spectrum admitted by a window.

• Typical daylight strategies require windows with a high VT.
• A low SGHC is also desirable where heat gain is a concern.
• Reflective glass is not recommended for day-lighting.
• There are many types of spectrally selective glazing that block out selective
wavelengths that can change the SHGC and levels of visible light transmittance.

33
Different Parameters of a Window
34
Source: Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) User Guide. 35
 CODE OF PRACTICE FOR GLAZING IN BUILDING
IS 3548- 1988
• The Indian standard code gives some guidelines for installing glazing in
buildings (for doors, windows & partitions).

• For finding the effective minimum thickness required, the code gives a
Nomogram chart which depend on the dimension of the glass panel and the total
wind load coming on to the panel calculated from IS 875 part 3.

• The thickness can be directly found from this chart which is for a glass panel
supported on four edges.

• But the code doesn’t talk about glass panels of different types and with different
support condition & loading duration.
36
 GLASS AS STRUCTURAL MATERIAL

• In olden days, glass was exclusively used as a material for windows, sometimes
for doors and partition panels, etc. (non-structural role).

• It was just seen as an appendage and its basic requirement was limited to resist
its self-weight and more importantly lateral & vertical loads like the wind & the
snow loads.

• But, the recent innovation has led to usage of glass as a structural material so
that it also takes the in-plane loads in addition to the out of plane loads for
which it was primarily designed for.
37
(GLASS STAIRCASE IN THE LOCH HOUSE - KILLEARN 38
Source: http://www.conceptstairs.co.uk/recent.html)
POST-TENSIONED CABLE NET
FAÇADE WITH GLASS PANELS AT
THE KEMPINSKI HOTEL,
MUNICH,GERMANY

(http://www.ihdwal.com/wp-content/
uploads/2013/12/kempinski-hotel-
munich-hotels-kempinski-hotel-
munich-hotel.jpg)

39
 GLASS - A STRUCTURAL MATERIAL
• Glass is a brittle material.

• It behaves in a perfectly linear elastic manner before undergoing brittle failure.

• The raw material used to make glass is silica and the bond between the silicon atoms
and oxygen atoms gives glass a theoretical tensile strength which is very high
compared to other conventional materials like steel and concrete.

• It has been found theoretically that based on the molecular bond strength the tensile
strength of glass is almost 100 times more than that of conventional steel.

40
Points to be pondered while designing a glass element

• The degree and type of loading to which the element will be subjected.

• The physical properties of the glass.

• The ways in which the glass could fail.

41
 APPLIED LOADING
• Codes of practice generally describe the range of static loading to be used in the
design.

• Impact loading from falling objects or projectiles are of special interest in the
design of glass structures as severe stresses can build up at the point of contact
of the projectile causing failure which propagates through the element.

• A typical test for a stair tread is to drop a 4 kg steel sphere onto the surface from
a height of 1m. Although the glass can crack under this load, it should not cause
complete failure of the assembly.

42
 PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
• There are many different glasses produced using chemical compositions
appropriate to their application.

• The vast majority of glass used in the construction industry is of one type
namely soda lime glass.

• This glass is produced in vast quantities in manufacturing plants world-

wide and the designer can be confident that the physical properties of glass
produced in Japan will approximate to those of glass produced in Finland.

43
TESTS FOR USE OF GLASS AS STRUCTURAL MATERIAL

• Three point flexure test

• Compression Test

• Tension Test

44
 THREE POINT FLEXURE TEST SETUP

Source: “Investigation Of Glass

As A Structural Material And
Comparative Study On Different
Types Of Glass “ by K Rajgopal &
S. Arul Jayachandran

45
COMPRESSION TEST SETUP

Source: “Investigation Of Glass As A Structural Material And

Comparative Study On Different Types Of Glass “ by K
Rajgopal & S. Arul Jayachandran

46
 TENSION TEST SETUP

Source: “Investigation Of Glass As A Structural Material And

Comparative Study On Different Types Of Glass “ by K
Rajgopal & S. Arul Jayachandran
47
 BIS Standards
• 1382 Glossary of terms related to glass & glassware (first revision)
• 5437 Figured, rolled and wired glass – specification
• 3548 Code of practice for glazing in buildings
• 10439 Indian Standard, Code of practice for patent glazing
• 2553 Safety glass – Specification (Part 1)
• 2835 Specification for flat transparent sheet glass
• 1400 Specification for Optical Glass

48
 REFERENCES
• S.K. Duggal, Building Materials, New Age International (P) Limited, Publishers,
New Delhi, 2008.
• R.C. Smith and C. K. Andres, Materials of Constructions, McGraw-Hill
Companies, 1990.
• W Addis (1999) A History of Using Glass in Buildings And Some Thoughts
About The Future, Proceedings of Glass in Buildings, UK. 15-16.
• Tim Macfarlane (1999), Glass - The New Structural Engineering Material,
Proceedings of Glass in Buildings, UK. 45-52.
• K Rajgopal, S (2012), Investigation of Glass as A Structural Material And
Comparative Study on Different Types of Glass, Report/M.Tech Thesis, IIT
Madras.
49
50
IS 3548: Nomogram for
Determining Thickness of Glass
Plate Sheet for Window Panes

51
TEST FOR FLAMEPROOFNESS OF WIRED GLASS
(IS 5437)

52
• Immediately upon attaining the temperature of 850° ±10°C, remove the furnace wall in which
the wired glass pane is glazed and subject the flame exposed face of the glass pane to a jet of
water for 15 seconds, the interval between attainment of temperature and impingement of
water being 30 ±5 seconds.

• Direct the jet of water to the centre of the test surface at an angle of 30° (to the horizontal
plane) and at a pressure of 1 kgf/cm2, the nozzle being located at a distance (angular) of 5
metres.

• The wired glass shall satisfy the requirement of the test if it remains in sash intact and no
clearances or passages, through which flame may easily pass, are formed. Any cracking due to
thermal shock shall be disregarded from the glass pane.

53
 FRAGMENTATION TEST
(IS 2553 Part-I)
• Toughened glass is broken by giving it punch and number of broken particles
over unit area are counted.

54
RESISTANCE TO SHOCK TEST
(IS 2553 Part-I)
• The toughened safety glass is
given a sudden shock with a
smooth surface steel ball of
63.5 mm in diameter (1040±2
g) from a height of 100 cm.

55
 DETERMINATION OF THICKNESS OF SHEET
GLASS (IS 2835)

• Measure the thickness of the glass sheet using

screw calipers at all the four points, 1, 2, 3 and
4 as shown in Fig.
• The individual thickness at each of the four
points shall be within the range of nominal
specified thickness.

56
 TEST FOR WAVINESS (IS 2835)
• Waviness is judged by the amount of distortion of a projected vertical straight
line when the sheet glass is moved through its length and width in a plane
parallel to that of the projection screen.

57
INSPECTION FOR STRIAE, BUBBLES, SEEDS AND
STONES (IS 1400)

58
 FRACTURE & ADHESION TEST (IS 2553 Part-I)
• The laminated safety glass is given
a sudden punch and fragments
from the under surface are
collected and weighed.
• A hardened steel ball with a
diameter of 38 mm and weighing
about 225 g shall be used for the
test.
• The ball is dropped freely from a
height of 4.88 m so as to strike the
specimen within 25 mm from its
centre.
• 10 specimens of 300 × 300 mm are
tested.
• Keep the specimen at 27±2˚C for
four hours before test.
59