Glass is becoming an increasingly popular material in the design community, as its sleek transparency imparts a modern, upscale design element to a product. And when glass is infused with a heat generating capability, the combination further extends the design utility of the material by permitting the creation of heating appliances made almost entirely of glass. Not surprisingly, the concept emerged in Europe, where bold designs are more quickly embraced and where comfort space heating is more widely used.

SGG Thermovit Elegance, Charme model has screen-printed pattern.

The glass radiator pictured above was designed by Kinon Aachen, GmbH, Aachen, Germany, which is a subsidiary of Saint Gobain Deutsche Glass, also in Aachen. The unit is part of a product line called SGG Thermovit Elegance, so named because it uses SGG Thermovit heat-generating glass.

The glass radiators can be used to heat a room inconspicuously, or they can serve as a visual focal point when highlighted by other design elements, as in the image above. When mounted vertically on a bathroom wall with the towel bar accessory, the panels double as towel warmers. The Diamant model, pictured above, uses fully transparent, extra-clear, low-iron glass. The Charme features a screen printed grid motif on the glass. More design motifs will become available in the future, including the option of custom designs. The Mirastar uses reflective glass to combine the functions of a heater, a towel warmer, and an anti-condensation mirror.

The glass SGG’s Thermovit is a laminated safety glass comprised of two 6 mm leaves of glass sandwiching a 1 mm layer of polyvinyl butyral film in the middle. The glass has been tested for impact resistance in accordance with the DIN En 12600 pendulum test where the pendulum has a swing height of 700 mm (27.65 in.). The glass survived the test without breaking. In the event the glass breaks during use, the PVB film would hold the pieces together. A conductive coating is applied to the inside surface on one of the glass panels. The electrical resistance of the coating provides the infrared heat when the panel is energized. SGG says that, while the current glass radiators generate about 1,000 W/m2, the underlying technology would permit boosting that output up to 2,000 W/m2. Furthermore, while the temperature for the laminated version of the glass is limited to 65 DegC, a non-laminated, single-pane version could be allowed to reach a temperature of 120 DegC (248 DegF) without risk.

Appliances

Wireless remote control for glass radiator has a range of more than 60 ft.

In addition to Thermovit, SGG produces other heating glass technologies, including SGG Therm+, produced by Saint Gobain Sovis, based in Chateau-Thierry, France, and with North American operations in Madison, Ga. SGG Therm+ heated glass is available in flat or bent versions, in thicknesses from 4 mm to 8 mm, and in a wide variety of sizes. The glass can be found in commercial foodservice applications, including catering equipment and in prepared food display cases, where it provides heated glass shelves. The glass can be specified in temperature ranges up to 250 DegC (482 DegF) and in power ranges up to 10,000 W/m2.

Asymmetrical emissivity characteristics of the glass permit the heat to be radiated in a specific direction. In addition, the glass can be custom-designed to have varying temperature gradients on different areas of the heated glass panel, giving the design engineer expanded design flexibility to locate specific amount of heat in specific places.