DESIGN AND PERFORMANCE STUDY OF LARGE-SCALE CORRUGATED THREE-DIMENSIONAL ARCHITECTURAL GLASS (LIULI) COMPOSITE PANELS

Abstract

Based on the China Beijing–Hangzhou Grand Canal Museum project, this study addresses the challenge that no existing manufacturer, domestically or internationally, could provide an off-the-shelf product meeting the safety and stability requirements for the first large-scale application of LIULI to a building curtain wall. Without a proven solution, the installation faced severe risks including physical damage, spontaneous fracture and falling debris, and dislodgement due to the substantial self-weight. Therefore, a design and performance study of large-scale corrugated three-dimensional LIULI composite panels was conducted. The final design adopts adhesive bonding of a double-layer heat-strengthened glass backing to a large-format, heavy corrugated 3D LIULI slab measuring 2.5m², 350kg, with a gradient thickness of 45–130mm. After comprehensive evaluation, a modified enhanced ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (PVE) interlayer was selected for lamination. The resulting structural configuration is defined as: LIULI slab + 2.28mm PVE + 10mm heat-strengthened glass + 1.52mm PVE + 10mm heat-strengthened glass. This composite system ensures high safety and high stability for large-scale corrugated 3D LIULI architectural applications.