Damage accumulation in point supported glass panels subjected to earthquake excitations via a simplified stepwise approach

Point-supported glass panels are frequently used for façades systems due to their preferred visual and aesthetics character. These glazing systems are subjected to various static and dynamic loads during the lifetime of a structure. For example, in earthquake prone areas, the glazing systems may be exposed to seismic forces that have been already observed to induce critical damages. The current paper presents a simplified FE-based method to estimate the failure of such point-supported glass panels in case of both single and multiple load events. As an example, the damage induced by a single seismic event is investigated by the current paper that focuses also on the cumulative effect on the glass strength due to a series of earthquakes recorded in California between 1992 and 2010. The proposed method uses a global FE model to estimate the earthquake-induced force time-histories that, then, can be applied for a more detailed sub-model of the local part of the glass in question, including the hole. Subdividing the stresses around the hole into sections allows for a final analysis using the well known model for static fatigue in glass to estimate the damage. The latter enables the calculation of both the short and long-term capacity of the point-supported glass panels that, eventually, leads to the prediction of the remaining life-time of the structure exposed to multiple seismic excitations. From the provided example, it is clearly demonstrated that fully tempered glass is superior for such seismic events. However, the proposed model is generic and may be applied to other type of forces, e.g., related to wind and gravity loads.