Understanding Structural Silicone in Unitized Facades

Описание: Structural silicone basics - are we designing the joint adequately in unitized facades?

The detail below is meant for illustration purposes, but primarily defines one key distinction than can be easily overlooked.

The SSG method is used to attach glass to a building's structure without the use of conventional mechanical fasteners (screws or bolts).

Instead, a silicone sealant is used to bond the glass directly to the frame, providing structural support.

What is critical though - it is meant to withstand lateral loads - not dead (gravity) loads.

What factors account for the structural silicone design?
▪️ Wind loads – the higher the wind load & the larger the pane of glass, the greater the min. required bite dimension.
▪️Sealant design stress – max allowable stress (pascals or kilopascals) for the specific sealant type you are using.
▪️Longest short span – if we have a rectangular shaped piece of glass, we use the shorter of the 2 dimensions (length vs width of glass).

How do you incorporate SSG joint design in your glazing structural calculations?

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