Triple Insulating Glass Improves U-value and Solar Heat Gain Performance - Viracon has expanded its triple insulating glass sizes to 70 square feet, giving architects and building designers more options as energy codes become stricter.
By adding another spacer and glass lite, designers can apply a more diverse range of substrates and high-performance coatings to a Viracon triple insulating glass unit, ultimately improving the product’s performance.
Note: Glass constructions in the above example include ¼” (6MM) clear with ½” spacer(s) and a VRE-54 coating on surface #2. The triple insulating (2) unit with the Low-E coating on the #4 surface is VE-85.
Consider the example at right: A dual pane product consisting of a ¼” (6mm) exterior lite with a VRE-54 coating on the number two surface, ½” (13.2mm) air space, and a ¼” inch (6mm) interior lite yields a winter U-value of 0.30 and a solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) of 0.31. Using the same components, but adding another ½” (13.2mm) air spacer with a third ¼” (6mm) new interior lite yields a significantly lower winter U-value of 0.22 while the SHGC falls to 0.28. The triple insulating (1) unit with one Low-E coating yields a nearly 27% improvement in winter U-value and approximately a 10% improvement in the SHGC.
Applying a second high-performance coating, such as VE-85, on the #4 surface (second lite) of the same triple insulating glass construction further improves the winter U-value to 0.16 and the SHGC to 0.25. Adding two high-performance coatings on the triple insulating (2) unit will yield a near 47% U-value improvement and approximately a 19% improvement in the SHGC.
“We are really excited about increasing the sizes of our triple insulating glass units” says Kevin Anez, Director of Marketing and Product Management. “Our customers asked for higher performing products in larger sizes with more variety, and we are delivering. Triple insulating glass units offer better performance than conventional dual pane configurations and are capable of accepting Silk-screen, high definition Silk-screen, and DigitalDistinctions™, all of which are designed to further enhance both performance and aesthetics.”
About Viracon, Inc.
Viracon is based in Owatonna, Minnesota, and has facilities in Statesboro, Georgia, St. George, Utah and Nazaré Paulista, Brazil. Viracon produces high-performance glass products, including tempered, laminated, insulating, silk-screened and high-performance coatings, for North American and international markets. The company is a subsidiary of Apogee Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: APOG). Apogee, headquartered in Minneapolis, is a leader in technologies involving the design and development of value-added glass products and services.
