Optical Properties Database for High Performance Glazings

This document presents the framework and foundation for an optical properties database undertaken as part of Subtask A.l, High-Performance Glazings, of Task 12 of the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Program.

At the start of the Task, the participants agreed that a database of glazing optical properties would prove invaluable in the performance modeling of windows. The compilation of an optical properties database for glazing materials is intended to provide researchers with a common set of data for modeling fenestration systems and their components. The database also serves as a cross-reference for materials and products produced in different countries, and can be used for hourly annual building energy simulations programs such as DOE-2.1 E.

The WINDOW program for calculating the thermal performance of fenestration systems was used to establish the optical properties database. WINDOW 4.0 calculates the total window system thermal and optical properties. The format of the database is consistent with WINDOW 4.0 libraries that are directly accessible by WINDOW. The database contains the optical properties of commonly-found glazing systems and glazings, and is included in the appendices.

Future work on this database could include glazing and glazing system optical property data from each country, the collection of spectral data, the development of guidelines for reporting and methods for evaluating optically complex materials, and the establishment of a mechanism for maintaining the database.