Heat transfer and stress distribution in the central part of vacuum glazing

• Published in: Applied thermal engineering 2019-08, Vol.159, p.113926, Article 113926
• Main Authors: Son, Hongik, Song, Tae-Ho
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Contact stresses; Dimensional analysis; Energy consumption; Glass; Glazing; Heat transfer; Hertz contact; Multi-dimensional heat transfer; Stress analysis; Stress concentration; Stress distribution; Stress-strain curves; Thermal energy; Thermal resistance; Vacuum glazing; Vacuum technology
• ISSN: 1359-4311; 1873-5606
• DOI: 10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2019.113926

•Heat transfer of the central part of glazing is analyzed by numerical analysis.•Influences of glass thickness and spacer diameter on heat transfer are studied.•Three types of modified spacer are suggested and analyzed by numerical analysis.•Influence of the best modified spacer on heat transfer is studied. Vacuum glazing (VG) is a super-insulator which can effectively reduce energy consumption in buildings. It consists of two glass panes and the gap in between is evacuated. To withstand the atmospheric pressure, spacers are arrayed in the gap and the edge is sealed. This study conducts heat transfer and stress analysis in the central part of VG. Previous studies used simple one-dimensional thermal resistance model to analyze the heat transfer. This study applies multi-dimensional heat transfer analysis and the effects of various geometrical parameters on the thermal resistance are concisely expressed in a fitted formula from the computational results. In addition, the stress concentration caused by the glass-spacer contact is numerically found and a few methods to avoid it are suggested. Finally, the heat transfer is analyzed again for a modified spacer to confirm the applicability of the previously fitted formula.