High thermal insulating performance and saving energy properties of vacuum glazing

Tetsuo Minaai, Takehisa Sekimoto, Taito Kinoshita
Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd.

For the improvement of thermal insulation in window, a conventional double glazing has been widely used for more than a decade in the western country. Vacuum glazing consists of a pair of glasses, which have 0.2 mm thick vacuum gap between two glass sheets. The thermal insulating property of vacuum glazing is higher than that of conventional double glazing. Furthermore, the hybrid glazing was combined one vacuum glazing into double glazing structure. The thermal insulating performance of hybrid glazing could be equal or better than triple glazing in spite of the similar thickness to double glazing. To obtain higher thermal insulating performance, the configurations of vacuum glazing such as wider spacer separation and the using the lower emmisivity coating glass could be arranged.

Computer simulation, SMASH, was performed in three types of glass window; a single pane of float glass, conventional double glazing and vacuum glazing. The reduction of energy consumption in winter due to the excellent performance of thermal insulation of vacuum glazing relative to the other glazing was conspicuous. The energy consumption for vacuum glazing was about 40 % lower than that of single pane and its effect to reduce of CO2 gas emission same to about 1.0 ton per year in a modeling house. Remarkably better saving energy effect in hybrid glazing with higher thermal insulating performance was also indicated.

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The Authors

Mr. Tetsuo Minaai Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd. / Technical Development Department I joined Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd. (NSG) after graduated university in 1992. Two years later, NSG included me started the collaboration research work of vacuum glazing with University of Sydney. I ... Read more