Polyimide Spacer Design for Stable Evacuated Glass Panels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing glass panel units with polymer spacers face challenges in maintaining a stable evacuated space due to flexibility issues and potential gas generation, which compromises thermal insulating properties.
Innovation Solution
The use of polyimide spacers with a diphenylether structure, represented by specific chemical formulas, which provide increased strength, elasticity, and reduced gas generation, ensuring a stable evacuated space and improved thermal insulation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If polymer spacers are used to provide flexibility, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to difficulty in maintaining thickness and gas generation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical structure parameters of the polymer material by introducing a diphenylether structure into the polyimide spacer. This structural modification achieves optimal balance between flexibility and stability, resolving the contradiction by tuning material parameters rather than changing material type entirely.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a composite approach by combining polyimide base material with diphenylether structural units to create a spacer material that exhibits both flexibility and dimensional stability. The composite structure at molecular level provides properties that neither component alone could achieve.
2Ease of operation
If polymer spacers are used to provide flexibility, then ease of operation is improved, but thermal insulating properties deteriorate due to gas generation
Solution Approach 1:
The diphenylether structure modification changes the thermal and chemical parameters of the polymer, reducing gas generation while preserving flexibility. This parameter optimization resolves the contradiction between operational flexibility and thermal insulation performance.
3Reliability
If spacer strength is increased to maintain evacuated space thickness, then reliability is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates due to reduced flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes the molecular parameters of the spacer material by incorporating diphenylether structures, achieving a balance where the spacer has sufficient strength for thickness maintenance while retaining manufacturing flexibility. This resolves the contradiction between structural reliability and manufacturing ease.
Data Source
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AI summary
The glass panel unit 10 includes a first glass panel 20, a second glass panel 30, a seal 40, an evacuated space 50, and a spacer 70. The second glass panel 30 is placed opposite the first glass panel 20. The seal 40 with a frame shape hermetically bonds the first glass panel 20 and the second glass panel 30 to each other. The evacuated space 50 is enclosed by the first glass panel 20, the second glass panel 30, and the seal 40. The spacer 70 is placed between the first glass panel 20 and the second glass panel 30. The spacer 70 contains polyimide represented by chemical formula (1):