Thin, heat-strengthened glass

Officials from PPG Industries’ flat glass business announced that the company can now manufacture heatstrengthened glass in thicknesses of less than 3 millimeters. PPG can produce heat-strengthened glass in thicknesses of 2 mm, 2.5 mm and 2.7 mm with surface-compression strength that exceeds that of fully tempered glass (greater than 10,000 pounds per square inch). The glass also meets ASTM C1048 standards for flatness, according to a company release. The added strength gives thin glass used in various solar applications that require resistance to wind load, hail impact and other environmental hazards the ability to meet UL and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) standards as well,company officials state. When incorporated into solar modules, heat-strengthened thin glass permits more sunlight to reach the active layer, which enhances the conversion of sunlight into energy and increases power output. With 2 mm Solarphire glass, solar transmittance improves by 0.3 percent compared to 3.2 mm glass and by 0.5 percent compared to 4 mm glass, according to the release. When used in solar mirrors for concentrated solar power and concentrating photovoltaic applications, heatstrengthened thin glass enables manufacturers to cold-bend reflective glass into shorter-radius support frames with less chance of stress breakage.

www.ppgsolarphire.com