Development of a New Joining Technology for Flat Glass
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47982/cgc.10.664Published
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Copyright (c) 2026 Holger Techen, Hans Ignacio Scholz, Jochen Krimm, Matthias Seel
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Abstract
Zippers are familiar to everyone from their daily use. In architecture and construction, their use is primarily for temporary protective measures in conjunction with textile structures. A view at the product diversity of zipper systems shows how much this development has expanded into applications beyond the classic textile industry. The zipper, consisting of the tapes and teeth, can be modified for very specific applications using a wide variety of material combinations. With sufficient UV resistance, fire resistance, high tear strength, and bonding durability, zippers are also suitable for applications in the construction sector. Basic tests on thin concrete precast elements revealed completely new fields of application for the concrete industry. Transferring this to glass structures, particularly facades or folded glass, led to hinge connections of the zippers in laminated glass. This paper presents a feasibility study of a new joining technique between flat glass and zippers. The realization is done via a lamination process. The paper shows results regarding the practical realization, performance tests (e. g. pull tests, creep tests) and potential applications with this new joining technique.
