Willow Glass

air membrane

Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates designed the headquarters for Corning Glass in 1993. Corning is a global leader in glass manufacturing and has introduced several innovative products in the last few decades. Products include Gorilla Glass, an ultra thin, high-strength glass that is commonly used in smartphone displays. Another is Willow Glass, an ultra thin, flexible glass with perfectly hermetic surfaces and pure optical clarity.

Typical building window glass is manufactured as what is called float glass. Float glass is made by extruding molten glass onto a bath of molten tin, creating a “hot” and “cold” side. The novel extrusion process used to manufacture Willow Glass avoids this step to create uniform glass sheets between 0.2mm and 2mm in thickness, which is then rolled around a spool for shipping.

Roche Labs is interested in exploring architectural applications of thin glass. While Willow Glass is not rated for external use (it is flexible, but extremely delicate), the product design firm DIRTT uses it to laminate architectural interiors. Hospitals, schools, and other programs where surfaces are cleaned regularly are common among DIRRT’s projects.

When Willow Glass is laminated to a surface, it tends to take on the characteristics of the substrate surface. For example, Willow Glass laminated to stainless steel becomes much more resistant to impact. Without being laminated to a substrate, Willow Glass is more likely to fracture. Breakage becomes especially likely when panel dimensions extend beyond two feet, due to natural imperfections and microscopic fractures that creep and grow over time. These imperfections slowly compromise Willow Glass’s strength. 

There have been a number of thin glass research projects, particularly from TU Delft scientists, that investigate the architectural potential of Willow Glass in composite façade and adaptive façade mechanisms (Louter, et. al). While these projects have introduced prototypes that radically redefine the typical enclosure, there are still challenges associated with bringing Willow Glass to an architectural scale. Issues such as weather and impact resistance are yet to be resolved. However, several interlayer and laminate options have been identified that would increase the strength of Willow Glass without compromising its unique properties - lightweight, transparent, and flexible.

To conclude, Roche Labs is investigating various Willow Glass and interlayer packages to expand its potential. We hope to create external enclosures and internal louvers that embrace the novel characteristics of thin glass.

References

Louter, C.,Akilo, M.A.,Miri, B., Neeskens, T.,Ribeiro Silveira, R., Topcu, Ö.,Van der Weide, I.,Zha, C.,Bilow, M.,Turrin,  M.,Klein, T.,O’Callaghan, J. Adaptive and composite thin glass concepts for architectural applications. HERON, 2018, vol. 63, H.1-2, S. 199-218. heronjournal.nl/63-12/9.html

PI Sam Golini

Production William Kavanagh

Management and Media Gioia Connell