Adhesively bonded joints in glass construction are mostly carried out by the use of silicones although alternative adhesives - like light- and UV-curing acrylates - offer many advantages: Not only higher strengths but also thinner, smaller and completely transparent joints are feasible. However in order to expand the potential for the use of adhesively bonded glass and its connections in the building construction it is beneficial to carry out proper calculations. During a research project the Institute of Building Construction has already examined the performance of light- and UV-curing acrylates in glass constructions in which different adhesives have been tested. A special focus was given to static and dynamic stress of the lamination, the strengths of the different adhesive samples and the ageing resistance of the joints.
Apart from testing the individual specimen also applications like elements for the use in safety barriers and overhead glazings have been examined. The constructions had not only to resist static loads - such as wind, snow and dead load - but also impact loads simulated by pendulum impact tests. The long-term durability of adhesive jo ints forms the subject of intense research at the moment.
For realistic results in numerical and analytical calculations it is important to find the correct way to define the material behaviour of the whole bonded joint connection. Particulary suitable for the determination of these material properties is the butt-bonded hollow cylinder in accordance to EN 14869-1 [1] modified for joints with glass. At temperatures of -20 °C, +23 °C and +80 °C (according to the ETAG 002 [2]) tension and shear testings have been made. On this base material models have been developed and currently further applications by the use of finite elements are being calculated.