GLASS ARCHITECTURE

AND
DESIGN

4th year -7th sem– B.Arch

MSEC – Kilakarai

Session 3
TYPES OF GLASS
MD.THULASII GANGAA
G.MUTHU SHOBA
AR8008 - GLASS ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN
OBJECTIVES
To introduce latest advances in the field of glass in architecture.
To enable right selection and usage of right glass for appropriate purposes.
To give understanding of use of glass in contemporary architecture as well as its role in green design and
improving building performance.

UNIT I GLASS AS BUILDING MATERIAL 10

Evolution & importance of glass in modern architecture. Applications of glass in buildings (façade/ interior
applications). Understanding the production & properties of glass. Value additions including coating
technology (importance & necessity) and processing (tempering, heat strengthening, DGU, laminated,
ceramic fritting). Types of Glass- mirror, lacquered, fire resistant. Modern glass with different applications.
Glass for hospitals, green homes, airports, offices, other buildings. Glass and human safety compliances.
Role of glass in fire safety considerations - Class E, EI & EW. Role of glass in acoustics. International
standards & codal provisions.
UNIT II GLASS AND GREEN ARCHITECTURE 10
Building Physics. Theory of electromagnetic radiation. Understanding of internal and external reflections.
Day-lighting in Buildings - introduction and basic concepts (VLT). Solar Control and thermal insulation (SF,
UV, SHGC). Need for green Buildings. Energy efficient buildings. Achieving energy efficiency using glass.
Factors of energy efficient material selection. Performance parameters. Energy codes and Green ratings -
ECBC, IGBC, GRIHA. Approaches of energy efficiency - prescriptive method, trade off method.
Accommodating passive architecture. Whole Building Simulation.

UNIT III CASE STUDY 10

Case study of green building designed predominantly with energy efficient materials. Calculations involving
basic factors in glass design. Optimization of Glass - for wastage reduction and standardisation of Design.
Construction site/ green building visit report.

UNIT IV DESIGN WORKSHOPS I 15

Analysing and creating building using interactive modelling. Analysing of sun path, solar exposure building
orientation, daylight, acoustics, site shadow analysis.

UNIT V DESIGN WORKSHOPS II 15

Analysis of thickness for safety, consideration of aesthetics, economy, optimisation and wastage,
airconditioning load calculations and payback analysis.
TOTAL: 60 PERIODS
OUTCOME
 An understanding of glass and its potential in contemporary usage
 An understanding of tools and software currently in practice with respect to the use of glass in
buildings.

TEXTBOOKS
1. Christian Schittich, 'Glass Construction Manual', Birkhauser Basel, 2007.
2. 'Architectural Glass Guide', Federation of Safety Glass, 2013.

REFERENCES
1. 'LEED 2011 For India - Green Building Rating System', Indian Green Building Council, 2011
2. 'Energy Conservation Building Code. User Guide', Bureau of Energy Efficiency, 2009.
80
3. 'IS 875 (Part -3) Reaffirmed 1997. Code of Practice for Design loads', Bureau of Indian
Standards,1998.
4. 'IS 7883. Code of Practice for the Use of Glass in Buildings', Bureau of Indian Standards, 2013.
5. Training Manuals & E- Learning, Glass Academy.
TYPES OF GLASS
Flat glass (produced by the Float
.Process ) is often processed to
suit many different applications and
requirements.

The Float Process was invented by Sir

Alastair Pilkington in 1952, allowing
larger and more consistent panels of
glass to be manufactured than ever
before. 64 years later, there are now
260 float plants worldwide which
produce glass panels up to 3 metres in
width and between 0.4mm and 25mm
thick. These plants, which can be up to
1 kilometre long, produce a combined
output of about 800,000 tonnes of glass
a week!

The ultimate strength of glass is related

to the rate at which it is cooled. There
are four main types or strengths of
glass:
TYPES OF GLASS

.1) Annealed Glass

Annealed glass is a basic product formed from the annealing
stage of the float process.
The molten glass is allowed to cool slowly in a controlled way
until it reaches room temperature, relieving any internal
stresses in the glass.
Without this controlled slow cooling, glass would crack with
relatively little change in temperature or slight mechanical
shock.
Annealed glass is used as a base product to form more
advanced glass types.

Annealed Glass
.
2) Heat Strengthened Glass

.Heat Strengthened Glass is semi tempered or semi

toughened glass. The heat strengthening process
involves heating annealed glass back up to about 650 to
700 degrees Celsius and then cooling it quickly, although
not as fast as with toughened glass. The heat
strengthening process increases the mechanical and
thermal strength of annealed glass, making it twice as
tough as annealed glass.

When it breaks the fragments are similar in size to

annealed glass, but with a greater likelihood of staying
together.

This glass is not often used in balustrades or similar

structural applications because of its limited strength
compared to tempered or toughened glass, although is
sometimes specified when there is concern about
tempered glass fracturing into thousands of small pieces.
 3) Tempered or Toughened Glass
.
This is the most common type of glass used in
balustrades or similar structural applications. Annealed
glass is heated to about 700 degrees Celsius by
conduction, convection and radiation. The cooling
process is accelerated by a uniform and simultaneous
blast of air on both surfaces. The different cooling rates
between the surface and the inside of the glass produces
different physical properties, resulting in compressive
stresses in the surface balanced by tensile stresses in the
body of the glass.
This process makes the glass four to five times stronger
and safer than annealed or untreated glass.
The counteracting stresses or surface compression gives
toughened glass its increased mechanical resistance to
breakage, and when it does break, causes it to produce
small, regular, typically square fragments rather than long,
dangerous shards that are far more likely to lead to
injuries.
4) Laminated Glass

.Any one of the above types of glass can be

laminated. The most commonly used finished
product is two sheets of toughened glass, laminated
together with a 1.52mm thick Polyvinyl Butyral (PVB)
interlayer.

Laminated glass offers many advantages. Safety and

security are the best known of these, so rather than
shattering on impact, laminated glass is held
together by the interlayer. This reduces the safety
hazard associated with shattered glass fragments, as
well as, to some degree, the security risks
associated with easy penetration.
If a glass panel breaks or shatters it is highly unlikely that
both laminated panels will break at the same time, which
.
means that the remaining panel and interlayer will
support the broken glass and keep it in place as edge
protection until it is replaced or secured suitably.
Another increasingly common interlayer is the SGP
Interlayer. The product offers 5 times the tear strength
and 100 times the rigidity of standard PVB. In the unlikely
event of both panes of toughened glass breaking then
the SGP will, in most applications, hold the glass in
place. SGP offers an enhanced impact performance and
greater protection against severe weather.

A variety of other interlayers are available which apply a

range of other technologies to the application. Structural
interlayers can be used to enhance the strength of the
glass where high loadings are required. Coloured
interlayers can be used for privacy or purely decorative
purposes. Other properties such as sound dampening
and fire resistance can also be incorporated into the
interlayer.
5.FUSION GLASS

Glass fusing is the joining together of pieces of glass at high temperature,

usually in a kiln. This is usually done roughly between 700 °C (1,292 °F) and
820 °C (1,510 °F),[3 and can range from tack fusing at lower temperatures, in
which separate pieces of glass stick together but still retain their individual
shapes,to full fusing at higher ones, in which separate pieces merge smoothly
into one another.

Most contemporary fusing methods involve stacking, or layering thin sheets of

glass, often using different colors to create patterns or simple images. The
stack is then placed inside the kiln (which is almost always electric, but can be
heated by gas or wood) and then heated through a series of ramps (rapid
heating) and soaks (holding the temperature at a specific point) until the
separate pieces begin to bond together.

Fused glass techniques are generally used to create art glass, glass tiles, and
jewellery, notably beads. Slumping techniques allow the creation of larger,
functional pieces like dishes, bowls, plates, and ashtrays. Producing functional
pieces generally requires 2 or more separate firings, one to fuse the glass and
a second slump it to shape.
6.ETCHED GLASS Compared to traditional engraving,
chemical etching is a more cost-effective
Etched and frosted glass are and ideal for those businesses with tight
generic terms for decorative, deadlines. The cost of complex
translucent glass which obscures chemically designs is no different from
visibility, yet still allows diffusethe cost of simple designs, as the
light to filter through. Etching process remains the same whatever your
describes the process of altering needs.
the glass surface to create a
decorative effect, usually into Etched glass can be made by
artwork, a decorative pattern or sandblasting, acid etching, using glass
lettering. etching cream or even mold etching,
where a mold is made with the design or
What is the difference between image created in relief and molten glass
etched and engraved glass is poured into the mold and left to cool.
The primary difference between
them is that engraving is a The acid is prepared by dissolving silica
physical process, and etching is a in a mixture of hydroelectric acid
chemical process. An engraver (hydrochloric acid), quartz powder,
uses sharp tools to cut lines calcium fluoride, and concentrated
directly into a surface, while an sulfuric acid derived after heating. Glass
etcher burns lines into a surface etching cream is used by hobbyists as it
with acid. is generally easier to use than acid.
ENGRAVED GLASS

.
7.STAINED GLASS
Glass
. is colored by adding metal
oxides or metal powders to
molten glass. Depending on the
metal, the glass takes on a
particular color. “cobalt blue” glass –
color comes from adding cobalt.
Copper oxides also make glass blue
to bluish green.

STAINED GLASS PAINTING

Stained glass painting is a more
modern form of stained glass where
the back of the glass is painted so
that you can see the color from the
front. It can be used in kitchens,
bathrooms, offices, and architectural
designs.
8. Beveled glass
Beveled glass is usually made by taking one-quarter inch-thick
clear glass and creating a one-inch bevel on one side around
the entire periphery.

These bevels act as prisms in the sunlight creating an

interesting color diffraction which both highlights the glasswork
and provides a spectrum of colors which would ordinarily be
absent in clear float glass.

"Beveled glass" can be obtained as clusters which are

arranged to create a specific design.These can vary from
simple three or four piece
designs.
9. FIGURED GLASS

Glass having an irregular surf

ace in a pattern that has been
rolled or formed during fabrica
tion; used to obscure vision or
to diffuse light.
10. CAST GLASS

Casting is a manufacturing process by

which a liquid material is (usually)
poured into a mold, which contains a
hollow cavity of the desired shape, and
then allowed to solidify.
The solid casting is then ejected or
broken out to complete the process.
Casting may be used to form hot liquid
metals or various materials that cold set
after mixing of components (such as
epoxies, concrete, plaster and clay).
Casting is most often used for making
complex shapes that would be
otherwise difficult or uneconomical to
make by other methods.