Mechanical properties of solid glass bricks

Abstract

Glass as one of the oldest building materials has been used for centuries to fill window openings. In recent years is it increasingly used also for load-bearing structural elements such as beams, columns, ribs, railings, etc. In addition to flat glass and hollow glass blocks, which have been used historically for non-load-bearing partitions and facades, new load bearing structures from solid glass bricks are arising. Their greater use is hampered by a lack of knowledge of their material properties. Also, their joining is difficult, as can be seen from the realized structures and published works focused on the glass bricks masonry. Most often, transparent adhesives or special mortars are used on the joint between glass bricks. In addition to some examples of completed glass brick structures, the paper is aimed at determining the material properties of glass bricks, which are a prerequisite for the design of safe structures. Two sets of experiments were performed. There were made three-point bending tests and compression tests to determine the bending tensile strength, modulus of elasticity and compressive strength of glass bricks.