V-Glass LLC, a contract research firm, has developed and improved a vacuum-insulating window glass that could drastically reducing the amount of costly heat lost from homes through traditional windows and possibly save up to five percent of total U.S. energy use. The windows are similar to a thermos, with individual panes of glass sealed at the edges and glass spacers as thin as a human hair keeping the two panes from touching. A low energy coating lowers radiation heat loss and the vacuum eliminates conduction and convection heat loss. Testing has shown that the windows can drastically help to reduce exorbitant energy costs, 30 to 50 percent of which can be directly attributed to heat gained or lost through windows. V-Glass plans to sell primarily to large window companies that routinely do the work of incorporating the glazing into a window frame.
