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Introduction
For too long now the thickness of glass required to make an aquarium has been a mystery. There are
various tables and guidelines that specify the thickness of glass for a given size aquarium. The major
drawback with the information is there is no indication of safety factors for the specified glass
thickness or any indication of how the suggested thickness was calculated.
This article is intended to help those people who are serious about aquarium design to calculate the
correct thickness of glass based on what is an acceptable safety factor for them. There are other
points to consider as well as the formula that will also be covered.
This information is intended as a guide only, and is in no way a guaranteed formula for success. It is
based solely on proven stress calculation methods and does not account for manufacturing defects or
construction faults.
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Softening Point:
730C
Modulus of Elasticity:
69GPa (69 x 109 Pa)
Poissons ratio:
Float Glass 0.22 to 0.23
Compressive Strength:
25mm Cube: 248MPa (248 x 106 Pa)
Tensile Strength:
19.3 to 28.4MPa for sustained loading
Tensile Strength (toughened glass): 175MPa.
Design Considerations:
The calculations that follow expect the glass to be supported around its perimeter on all four sides.
The calculation is the same regardless of whether the perimeter join is in compression or tension.
Typical all glass aquariums have all their joins in either tension or shear or both. This method of
construction relies 100% on the strength of the silicone holding it together, and is also the weakest
join type when using silicone. Steel frame aquariums have the silicone under compression. The
silicone is not required to have any strength for this type of aquarium and serves only as a sealer and
packer.
The thickness of the bottom glass is covered by the second set of calculations, but does not cover an
aquarium which has a bottom glass that is well supported from below the aquarium in an even
uniform manner. The surface must be very level. On very large aquariums this can be difficult to
achieve and self-leveling filler may be needed between the polystyrene and the base. This should be
applied just prior to fitting the aquarium to the base so that the aquariums weight levels out
imperfections. Significant time must be allowed for the filler to fully cure before the aquarium is
filled. If the bottom glass is only to be supported by all four edges then use the second set of
calculations. The same thickness glass can be used on a uniformly supported bottom as well and this
will significantly improve the safety factor. If the aquarium is to be supported from below in a
uniform distributed manor, then the same thickness glass that is used for the largest side panel may
be used. To do so requires the supporting base to support part of the load so therefore it must be
VERY strong.
NOTE: The calculations only consider the water to the top edge of the glass. If the glass is a window
below the surface then it is outside the scope of this article.
Calculations
Terms Used:
Length in mm (L):
Width in mm (W):
Height in mm (H):
Thickness in mm (t):
Water Pressure (p):
Allowed Bending Stress (B):
Modulus of Elasticity (E):
The length to height ratio effects the strength of the glass. The table below lists alpha and beta
constants to be used based on with the length to height ratio.
http://www.fnzas.org.nz/?p=1732
9/25/2012
Ratio of L/H
0.5
0.666
1.0
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
Alpha
0.003
0.0085
0.022
0.042
0.056
0.063
0.067
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Beta
0.085
0.1156
0.16
0.26
0.32
0.35
0.37
Alpha
Beta
0.077
0.0906
0.1017
0.111
0.1335
0.453
0.5172
0.5688
0.6102
0.7134
When the ratio is less than 0.5, use Alpha and Beta values for 0.5.
When the ration is greater than 3, use Alpha and Beta values for 3.
Note: For bottom panel, use Length to Width ration (L/W).
The water pressure (p) is directly proportional to the Height (H) x the force of gravity (approx 10
(9.81 for people who want to be exact)).
p = H x 10 in N/mm2
The bending stress allowed (B) is equal to the Tensile Strength of glass / safety factor.
B = 19.2 / 3.8 = 5.05N/mm2 (Safety factor = 3.8)
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= 0.48mm
GlassThicknessCE.xls
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9/25/2012