Sustainable roof glazing systems by using thin glass in multi-pane insulating glazing units

Masterarbeit

Issues regarding ecological, economic and social sustainability are pervasive topics in society and are also increasingly affecting the construction industry. In structural glass engineering, the increased use of thin glass represents a decisive development trend with the purpose of reducing glass thickness and thus material usage and weight. Here, the use of thin glass in insulating glazing units (IGU) in window and facade construction offers a promising approach. In this context, the exposure to wind and snow has to be considered in order to ensure that possible products meet the safety requirements in the building sector. Within the scope of the work, these influences are to be investigated in order to determine the required minimum thickness of the glass, depending on different IGU formats. Based on these insights, the CO2 savings potential is of interest and needs to be calculated.

Forschungsziel

The following questions are relevant for this thesis: - How much glass is needed in the construction industry and what share can be attributed to the use of IGUs? - What is the carbon footprint and energy use in the production of glass depending on possible re-finement levels of IGUs? - And in particular, how much CO2 savings potential lies in the use of thin glass as the middle pane in IGUs?

Forschungsmethode

The following steps are necessary: - Literature review on environmental and economic sustainability in glass construction - Determination of technical requirements for the integration of thin glass in IGUs - Data-based investigations on CO2 savings potentials for thin glass integration in IGUs - Derive practical application strategies for thin-glass integration in IGUs

Bemerkungen

• Preferred language: English (German also possible)

• The thesis will be in cooperation with the company Velux

• Visit of the company Velux in Denmark is possible