Low-carbon
glazing
Flat float glass with a carbon footprint 6× lower than standard virgin glass. Made in high-efficiency furnaces with ≥50% recycled cullet and 100% renewable electricity. Optical and mechanical performance identical to Planibel Standard. Applications: facades, interior partitions, wall cladding, furniture. Infinitely recyclable.
What is low-carbon glazing?
Low-carbon soda-lime flat glass is a float glass made from silica sand, soda ash, limestone and cullet, manufactured with a high proportion of recycled glass and electricity from renewable sources. The cullet acts as a remelted secondary raw material, while the sand and soda ash provide the vitrification. The composition remains identical to that of a standard float glass, which preserves its optical and mechanical performance.
This chemical similarity allows all the usual processing. The glass can be cut, toughened, laminated or coated using the same processes, and built into double or triple glazing without adaptation. Surface treatments for thermal, solar or acoustic performance also apply without restriction.
Because it behaves identically downstream, low-carbon glass can replace standard glass with no change to installation or thermal calculations. Its recyclability allows it to be remelted indefinitely without loss of quality.
Manufacture relies on melting in high-efficiency furnaces powered by renewable electricity, with a high cullet content. External cullet is collected from construction sites through a free take-back service run by the group. Production takes place notably at Louvain-la-Neuve, AGC's European headquarters.
Low-carbon glass keeps all the uses of standard float glass in facades, interior partitions or wall cladding, while reducing the carbon footprint of the envelope.
Installation & uses
The glass is installed following the same rules as standard float glass. It can be held by a sealant bead or by an aluminium, timber or steel frame, and fitted into the usual facade or interior partition framing systems. Subframes and setting blocks apply unchanged compared with virgin glass.
The product is available annealed, toughened or laminated, and lends itself to the same double or triple glazing assemblies. The surfaces can take a solar control or thermal coating. This flexibility in processing covers every application of the glazed envelope, including configurations with high thermal or acoustic performance.
Because it behaves identically upstream, low-carbon glazing can be used as a direct substitute in new-build projects as well as in the renovation of existing envelopes. Standard stock sheet sizes allow cutting to size by the usual glass processors, with no specific minimum order.
At end of life, the producer organises the take-back of offcuts or removed glass above a certain volume. The glass then returns to the furnaces as cullet to be remelted, without loss of optical or mechanical quality.
About the producer
AGC Glass Europe is the European arm of the AGC group, one of the world's leading glassmakers, with its European headquarters in Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium. The company produces flat glass for construction, automotive and electronics, and has for several years been developing products with a reduced carbon footprint.
Its Low-Carbon range relies on high-efficiency furnaces, a high recycled cullet content and the use of renewable electricity, with no compromise on the performance of the standard product.
Technical performance
EN 572-1, EN 572-2, EN 572-9: soda-lime silicate float glass, CE marking. Cradle to Cradle Bronze certified. INIES EPD no. 20240940455-FC, valid until 31 December 2029.
FAQ
Is low-carbon glazing loadbearing?
No. Glass is non-structural and is installed as infill. Its mechanical properties are those of Planibel Standard: characteristic bending strength greater than or equal to 45 N/mm², Young's modulus 70,000 N/mm². It accepts the same processing: toughening, laminating and magnetron coating.
What is its embodied carbon?
5.50 kgCO₂eq per m² for 4 mm, and 6.18 over the full life cycle, around six times less than standard virgin glass. Source: INIES EPD no. 20240940455-FC, valid until 31 December 2029.
Which thickness should I choose?
Nine thicknesses, from 3 to 19 mm, with the EPD established for 4 mm, which serves as the reference. In 4 mm single glazing, the U-value is 5.8 W/m²·K according to EN 673: the glass transmits heat, it does not insulate on its own.
What happens to it at end of life?
It can be remelted indefinitely without loss of quality. AGC provides free take-back from sites from ten tonnes of flat glass upwards.
Alongside
Same layer, same use · three materials to compare.
