Overview
Pilkington Optiwhite™ is a range of extra clear low-iron float glass products with very high solar transmittance, offering improved solar energy conversion and consistent performances. This range of low-iron glass products is suitable for use in thin film photovoltaics, crystalline silicon photovoltaics, concentrated solar power technology, solar thermal collectors and solar mirrors.
The Pilkington Optiwhite™ Range includes the standard and well established low-iron glass Pilkington Optiwhite™ and Pilkington Optiwhite™ S, which was developed specifically for the solar industry and offers even greater solar energy transmittance. Pilkington Microwhite™ is our Pilkington Optiwhite™ in its extremely thin version (glass thicknesses down to 1.0 mm).
With its very high solar energy transmittance, our low iron glass Pilkington Optiwhite™ is the ideal cover plate for a range of solar technologies, including Thin Film Photovoltaics, Concentrated Solar Power Technology and Solar Thermal Collectors. Pilkington Optiwhite™ can also be used as a cover plate for Crystalline Silicon Photovoltaics.
Benefits
Pilkington Optiwhite™ for solar applications offers following benefits:
- very high light and solar heat transmittance,
- consistent lifetime performance following prolonged exposure to the sun (no solarisation),
- available in annealed or tempered/toughened form for Pilkington Optiwhite™ and Pilkington Optiwhite™ S; available in annealed form only for Pilkington Microwhite™.
Literature
Pilkington Optiwhite™ Product Range
Our range of solar glass products includes the standard and well established low iron glass Pilkington
Optiwhite™, and Pilkington
Optiwhite™ S, which was developed specifically for the solar industry and offers even greater solar energy transmittance.
Pilkington
Microwhite™ is our Pilkington
Optiwhite™ in its extremely thin version (glass thicknesses down to 1.0 mm).
The properties of our Pilkington Optiwhite™ products are summarised in the table below:
Pilkington Optiwhite™ - performance data summary
Nominal Substance
(mm) ± 0.2 |
Light Transmittance
(%) |
Solar Direct Transmittance
(%) |
| 3.0 |
91.1 |
90.3 |
| 3.2 |
91.1 |
90.2 |
| 4.0 |
90.9 |
89.8 |
Pilkington Microwhite™ - performance data summary
Nominal Substance
(mm) |
Light Transmittance
(%) |
Solar Direct Transmittance
(%) |
| 1.0 ± 0.05 |
91.7 |
91.6 |
| 1.1 ± 0.1 |
91.7 |
91.5 |
| 1.3 ± 0.1 |
91.7 |
91.5 |
| 1.6 ± 0.1 |
91.6 |
91.4 |
Pilkington Optiwhite™ S - performance data summary
Nominal Substance
(mm) ± 0.2 |
Light Transmittance
(%) |
Solar Direct Transmittance
(%) |
| 3.0 |
91.6 |
91.1 |
| 3.2 |
91.6 |
91.0 |
| 4.0 |
91.5 |
90.8 |
All measurements have been carried out by UKAS accredited laboratory and have been calculated to ISO9050:2003 AM1.5 and D65 (2dg obs).
All figures quoted are indicative of typical product properties.