Structural Analysis of Sealed Insulating Glass

Abstract

This paper presents an iterative procedure that can be used to determine the structural response of sealed insulating glass (IG) units which are subjected to uniform lateral loads and variations of both atmospheric pressure and air space temperature. The solution is achieved by simultaneously satisfying equilibrium conditions and air space compatibility relationships. A flow chart for a micro‐computer program to accomplish the analysis is presented. Selected results show that the distribution of load between the inner and outer plates of an IG unit depends significantly on several factors, including the ratio of the glass plate thicknesses, atmospheric pressure variations, and air space temperature variations.