STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY-SPONSORED RESEARCH OR

DEVELOPMENT

[0001] This invention was made with government support under SBIR Assistance Agreement DE-SC0017841 awarded by the United States Department of Energy. The government has certain rights in the invention.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] The present application claims priority to co-pending U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/038,102, filed June 11, 2020, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0003] The present invention relates to a process for creating a two-stage hermetic seal element for an envelope having an interior region that is isolated from the environment.

BACKGROUND

[0004] Many existing evacuated glazing assemblies (e.g., vacuum-insulated glass (“VIG”) assemblies) include two or more panes (e.g., glass panes) that are separated from each other by a space. A temperature differential across the assembly can significantly impact the structure of the assembly and, in some cases, cause the assembly to fail. For example, when an evacuated glazing assembly is installed in an exterior wall of a temperature-controlled and/or insulated building, the temperature of the exterior pane typically approaches the outside air temperature (contracting when exposed to cold, expanding when exposed to heat). The interior pane typically remains at a relatively constant temperature that is consistent with the inside air temperature. Movement of the exterior pane (i.e. contraction or expansion) relative to the interior pane is known as “differential pane movement,” and too much differential pane movement may result in failure of the evacuated glazing assembly due to cracking, seal failure, or other mechanisms.

SUMMARY [0005] One type of hermetic seal element that may be used to seal between panes of an evacuated glazing assembly includes a metallic bridge element (e.g., a metal foil) that is welded to a metallic adhesive layer deposited on the panes. Examples of such a hermetic seal element are provided in U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/936,140, filed November 15, 2019, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

[0006] Hermetic seal elements may fail (that is, leak) via a variety of different mechanisms, including microleakage paths along the interface between the metallic bridge element and the glass, flaws in the metallic bridge element (e.g., scratches, wrinkles, microstructure damage, perforation through or along the edges of welds, joints between discrete segments comprising a metallic bridge element, etc.), flaws in the glass (e.g., scratches), flaws due to uncontrolled process parameter variations (e.g., due to “tramp” metal adhered to the sonotrode), and misalignment of weld segments where they overlap. While these failure mechanisms may be minimized using tightly-controlled manufacturing processes, a need exists for a seal configuration that can provide more reliable hermeticity in a cost-efficient manner.

[0007] The invention provides, in one aspect, an evacuated glazing assembly having first and second spaced-apart substrates connected to each other by a seal element to form an evacuable interior space therebetween. The seal element is formed by bonding a metallic bridge element to at least one of the substrates by cold welding to form a first stage seal and forming a second stage seal at least partially in contact with the first stage seal. The seal element is hermetic in that the seal element is configured to effectively isolate the interior space from the surrounding environment.

[0008] The invention provides, in another aspect, an evacuated glazing assembly including a first substrate, a second substrate spaced from the first substrate to define an interior space therebetween, and a seal element disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate to hermetically isolate the interior space from a surrounding environment. The seal element includes a first stage seal formed by a cold-welded bond between the metallic bridge element bonded and the first substrate, and a second stage seal at least partially in contact with the first stage seal.

[0009] The invention provides, in another aspect, a method of forming a sealing element for hermetically sealing between two substrates of an evacuated glazing assembly. The method includes bonding a metallic bridge element to each of the two substrates to form a first hermetic sealing stage, applying a sealing material at least partially contacting the first sealing stage, and heating the sealing material to form a second hermetic sealing stage.

[0010] Other features and aspects of the invention will become apparent in view of the following description and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0100] FIG. 1 is a partial section view of an exemplary evacuated glazing assembly including an interior space and a seal element that isolates the interior space from a surrounding environment.

[0101] FIG. 2 is a partial section view illustrating a first stage and a second stage of the seal element of FIG. 1 coupled to a substrate.

[0102] FIG. 3 is a partial section view illustrating a first stage and a second stage of a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0103] FIG. 4 is a partial section view illustrating a first stage and a second stage of a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0104] FIG. 5 is a partial section view illustrating a first stage and a second stage of a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0105] FIG. 6 is a partial section view illustrating a first stage and a second stage of a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0106] FIG. 7 is a partial section view of the evacuated glazing assembly of FIG. 1 including a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0107] FIG. 8 is a partial section view of the evacuated glazing assembly of FIG. 1 including a seal element according to another embodiment.

[0108] FIG. 9 is a photograph illustrating a first stage and a second stage of a seal element embodying aspects of the present disclosure.

[0109] FIG. 10 is a top view illustrating ribbons of foil coupled to a substrate. [0110] FIG. 11 is a flow chart illustrating a sealing process according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0011] Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the above-described drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention.

DEFINITIONS

[0012] As used herein, the term “pane” refers to a glass element intended for use as a wall element or substrate in a flat hermetically-sealed enclosure assembly.

[0013] “Differential pane movement” refers to the relative pane movement between two adjacent panes that occurs when the temperature of one pane changes relative to the temperature of the other pane. It may also refer to the relative pane movement that occurs under mechanical influence or other influence (e.g., impact during handling or use).

[0014] “Hermeticity” or “level of hermeticity” refers to a measure of the maximum leakage rate of which a seal is capable, measured for example in terms of standard cubic centimeters of helium/second per centimeter of seal length (“sccs/cm”), or equivalent. In general, higher hermeticity corresponds to a lower value of leakage rate, and vice versa.

[0015] “Hermetic” refers to a seal that is capable of achieving the hermeticity appropriate or specified for the application. It should be recognized that each stage in a multi-stage seal, such as seal stages described and illustrated herein, may be described as hermetic without inferring that the hermeticity for each stage is the same.

[0016] The term “highly-malleable” refers to an object or material having a yield stress no greater than 10,000 psi (e.g., no greater than 5,500 psi).

[0017] The phrase “solid-state” with respect to welding or coating means a joining process that does not involve melting of the materials being joined.

[0018] The term “cold weld” refers to a solid-state process for joining two or more parts. [0019] The term “sonotrode” refers to a vibrating tool that transmits translational motion to the assembly of substrates to be welded by an ultrasonic bonding device.

[0020] The terms “mechtrode” or “mechatrode” refers to a mandrel or other end- effector tool used in processes, typically not involving ultrasonic vibration, for solid-state joining or coating of materials by virtue of relative motion under pressure.

[0021] The term “inboard,” with respect to a location of a first feature relative to a second feature on an assembly having a generally planar shape, refers to a location of the first feature on the side of the second feature that is closer to the centroid of the generally planar shape.

[0022] The term “outboard,” with respect to a location of a first feature relative to a second feature on an assembly having a generally planar shape, refers to a location of the first feature on the side of the second feature that is farther from the centroid of the generally planar shape.

[0023] The term “bridge element” means an element that is bonded to a substrate, and that forms a portion of a hermetic seal element isolating an interior space from the environment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] FIG. 1 illustrates a portion of an exemplary evacuated glazing assembly 10 (e.g., a window assembly configured for installation into an exterior wall of a building) that includes a first substrate 14 (e.g., a first pane) and a second substrate 16 (e.g., a second pane) spaced from the first substrate 14 to define an interior space 18 (also referred to as an evacuable gap or interior region) to be sealed and isolated from an environment surrounding the evacuated glazing assembly 10. One or more spacers 20 formed from an incompressible or substantially incompressible material (e.g., composite, plastic, glass, metal, etc.) may be positioned in the interior space 18 between the substrates 14, 16 to maintain a consistent gap between the substrates 14, 16. The substrates 14, 16 in the illustrated embodiment are non- metal (e.g., glass, such as annealed or tempered glass). In other embodiments, one or both substrates 14, 16 may be metallic. A seal element 22 is attached to each of the substrates 14, 16 to seal the interior space 18 from the surrounding environment. [0025] With continued reference to FIG. 1, the seal element 22 includes a metallic bridge element 30 and a sealing material 34. The bridge element 30 can be formed of one or more layers of metal foil (e.g., aluminum foil). In the illustrated embodiment, the bridge element 30 is formed from two segments 30a, 30b, each attached directly to a respective substrate 14, 16 via a solid-state weld process (e.g., a friction welding process using a sonotrode) to form a weld 36. In the illustrated embodiment, the two segments 30a, 30b are connected to each other by a connecting weld 42 (e.g., a fusion weld, such as a laser weld, MicroTIG weld, resistance weld, etc., or the weld 42 may include a solid-state weld). In other embodiments, the segments 30a, 30b of the bridge element 30 may be integrally formed from a single piece of material, or the segments 30a, 30b may be connected together in other ways.

[0026] Referring to FIG. 2, the bridge element 30 is attached to the substrate 14 by the weld 36. The bridge element 30 extends across the interior space 18 along its perimeter boundary (i.e. between the substrates 14, 16), to hermetically seal the interior space 18. The weld 36 defines a first sealing stage 38 (which may also be referred to as a first stage seal or primary seal) of the seal element 22. The first stage seal 38 is hermetic and also provides a structural connection between the bridge element 30 and the substrate 14. That is, the first stage seal 38 is configured to resist shearing forces due to thermal expansion or differential pane movement. In some embodiments, the structural connection between the bridge element 30 and the substrate 14 defined by the first stage seal 38 has a greater shear strength than the tensile strength of the bridge element 30 itself.

[0027] With reference to FIG. 3, in some embodiments, the seal element 22 further includes an interlayer 37, which may be made of a metal (e.g., aluminum) or inorganic material. In particular, the interlayer 37 is formed as a coating that is deposited or otherwise placed on the edge portions (e.g., around a periphery) of the substrate 14. For example, in some embodiments, the interlayer 37 may be deposited on the substrate 14 using a mechatrode. The bridge element 30 is attached to the substrate 14 over the interlayer 37 to form the weld 36 (e.g., by a solid-state weld process such as a friction welding process using a sonotrode) and thereby form the first stage seal 38. The interlayer 37 may improve the mechanical strength and/or hermeticity of the first stage seal 38.

[0028] With reference to FIGS. 2-3, the sealing material 34 is at least partially in contact with the first stage seal 38 and defines a second sealing stage 40 (which may also be referred to as a second stage seal or secondary seal) of the seal element 22. The sealing material 34 may be comprised of solderglass, metal solder, or other material suitable for bonding to the bridge element 30 and/or the substrate 14 and forming a seal of the required hermeticity. Typically, the hermeticity of a flaw-containing first sealing stage 38 is less (that is, leaks more) than that for the corresponding second sealing stage 40. In contrast, the hermeticity of a first sealing stage 38 that is flaw-free is typically similar to that for the corresponding second sealing stage 40. Correspondingly, the hermeticity of the combined two-stage seal element 22 is on the same order as the hermeticity of the second stage seal 40.

[0029] In some embodiments, the sealing material 34 may be an organic sealing material. In such embodiments, the organic sealing material is preferably a low-outgassing and low-permeation rate organic sealing material. Organic sealing materials have not previously been able to provide long-lasting hermetic sealing performance in a passive (i.e. not actively pumped) evacuated glazing assembly. The two-stage seal element 22 may allow use of organic sealing material for the second sealing stage 40, however, because the hermetic first stage seal 38 minimizes the exposure of the second stage seal 40 to the outside environment. In other words, the first stage seal 38 reduces potential gas permeation through the second stage seal 40, which allows for a greater variety of materials to be used for the second stage seal 40 without compromising the overall hermiticity of the seal element 22

[0030] In the illustrated embodiment, the sealing material 34 covers the entire first stage seal 38. In other embodiments, the sealing material 34 may be applied to contact only a portion of the first stage seal 38 (e.g., the second stage seal 40 may abut the inboard edge of the first stage seal 38, covering the interface joint between first stage seal 38 and the substrate 14). The sealing material 34 can be bonded to one or both the substrate 14 and the bridge element 30.

[0031] The sealing material 34 has a melting and/or curing temperature lower than a melting temperature of the substrates 14, 16 and other portions of the evacuated glazing assembly 10. In some embodiments, the sealing material 34 is melted and/or cured to form a bond with the substrate 14 and the bridge element 30 by heating at least a portion of the product 10 containing the sealing material 34 using a heating device. In some embodiments, the entire assembly 10 can be heated using a heating device (e.g., an oven) to melt and/or cure the sealing material 34 and thereby form the second stage seal 40.

[0032] Referring to FIG. 2, because the first stage seal 38 is positioned outboard of the second stage seal 40, the structural connection formed by the weld 36 between the bridge element 30 and the substrate(s) 14, 16 bears substantially all of the shear stress that may be applied to the seal element 22. That is, if a force F is applied to the seal element 22 (e.g., due to unequal thermal expansion and/or differential pane movement), substantially all of the shear stress will be borne by the high strength weld 36 of the first stage seal 38 and not by the second stage seal 40. Because the second stage seal 40 is shielded from mechanical stress by the first stage seal 38, hermeticity of the second stage seal 40 may be preserved for a longer period. In other embodiments, however, the second stage seal 40 may be positioned at least partially on an outboard side of the first stage seal 38.

[0033] FIGS. 4-6 illustrate various constructions of the second stage seal 40. For example, the second stage seal 40 may be formed by melting an inboard edge of the bridge element 30 (FIG. 4) and/or an intermediate portion of the bridge element 30 within the area of the first stage seal 38 (FIG. 5). In such embodiments, the second stage seal 40 may be formed by laser welding. Referring to FIG. 6, the second stage seal 40 may be formed by cold-welding an inboard edge of the bridge element 30 and/or an intermediate portion of the bridge element 30 within the area of the first stage seal. The embodiments of the second stage seal 40 illustrated in FIGS. 4-6 permit the second stage seal 40 to be formed either before or after the first stage seal 38, providing additional flexibility in the manufacturing process.

[0034] Although only the substrate 14 is illustrated in FIGS. 2-6, the seal element 22 includes substantially identical first and second sealing stages at the interface between the bridge element 30 and the second substrate 16 (FIG. 1). Referring back to FIG. 1, the connecting weld 42 can be applied to the outer extents of the bridge element 30 to bond the segments 30a, 30b of the bridge element 30 together. With reference to FIG. 7, in another embodiment of a similar evacuated glazing assembly 10A, the connecting weld 42 may be replaced by connecting material 43 joining the segments 30a, 30b of the bridge element 30. The connecting material 43 may be a metallic solder or a solderglass material, for example. Using connecting material 43 in place of the connecting weld 42 may provide a lower heat input into the seal element 22 and the substrate(s) 14, 16 during application. In yet other embodiments, the connecting material 43 may be an adhesive.

[0035] Referring to FIG. 8, in another embodiment of a similar evacuated glazing assembly 10B, the bridge element 30 is formed from a single, generally planar segment. As such, the connecting weld 42 and the connecting material 43 illustrated in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 and 7, respectively, may be omitted. In the illustrated embodiment, the peripheral edges of the substrates 14, 16 are offset, such that an outboard edge of the first substrate 14 is spaced apart from an outboard edge of the second substrate 16. The offset arrangement provides access for forming the outboard sealing stages 38, 40.

[0036] FIG. 11 illustrates an exemplary process with four primary steps for producing a two-stage seal element, such as the embodiments of the seal element 22 described above with reference to FIGS. 1-8, and for placing and attaching the seal element 22 relative to the substrate(s) 14, 16. It will be appreciated that FIG. 11 encompasses the general process , and that additional steps may be incorporated into the process to facilitate formation of the seal element 22, as well as placement and attachment of the seal element 22 on the substrate(s) 14, 16. The general process includes i) preparing anon-metallic substrate (step S 100), ii) attaching the metallic bridge element to the substrate to form the first sealing stage (step SI 04), iii) applying a sealing material at least partially in contact with the first sealing stage to form a second sealing stage (step S108) and, iv) further processing (step SI 12). These primary steps may be performed in sequence, or one or more steps may be performed simultaneously.

[0037] In the first primary step (step SI 00), the substrate 14, 16 is prepared, which may include cleaning the substrate 14, 16 (e.g., by plasma cleaning in some embodiments) and/or applying an interlayer (e.g., interlayer 37; FIG. 3) to the substrate 14, 16. In some embodiments, the interlayer 37 is applied to the substrate 14, 16 using a process or method that does not include an oven for heating the substrate 14, 16, and that does not use a vacuum chamber (i.e. an oven-free, vacuum chamber-free process). For example, in some embodiments, a malleable metal (e.g., aluminum) is applied to the non-metal substrate using friction surfacing. Friction surfacing includes pressing a metal consumable (e.g., a “mechatrode”) that is formed of the malleable metal onto the surface of the non-metallic substrate and moving one or both of the metal consumable and the substrate (i.e. to achieve relative movement) to deposit or transfer the malleable metal onto the surface, which forms the metallic layer that is part of the seal element. In some constructions, a stable gas (e.g., argon) can be used to exclude oxygen during the friction surfacing process.

[0038] In the second primary step (step SI 04), the metal bridge element 30 is attached to the substrate 14, 16, either directly or to the optional interlayer 37, by a cold welding process. In particular, a sonotrode of an ultrasonic seam welder can be used to weld the metal bridge element 30 and form the weld 36 that defines the first sealing stage 38.

[0039] In the third primary step (step S108), the sealing material 34 is applied at least partially in contact with the first sealing stage 38. In some embodiments, the sealing material 34 is provided as a powder (e.g, powdered solderglass), which is distributed over first sealing stage 38. In some embodiments, the sealing material 34 can be provided as a gel or the like. In yet other embodiments (e.g., FIGS. 4-6), the sealing material 34 can be a portion of the metal bridge element 30 itself, melted or otherwise transformed by a laser-welding, cold-welding, or other similar process to form the second sealing stage 40.

[0040] Finally, in the fifth primary step (step SI 12), further processing may occur, such as melting and/or curing the sealing material 34 (e.g., using an oven or other heat source) to form the second sealing stage 40. Additional processing may include subjecting the interior space 18 to a vacuum. The further processing of the assembly can take many forms, including igniting getter in the interior space and, in some cases, secondary welding or sealing steps that may be needed to ensure the interior space can be evacuated or permanently sealed.

[0041] A two-stage seal element 22 according to embodiments described and illustrated herein provides numerous advantages over a single-stage seal element. For example, the second stage seal 40 provides a redundant or second hermetic seal that may maintain the integrity of the seal element 22 should the hermeticity of first stage seal 38 be degraded via any of a variety of different mechanisms, including microleakage, perforation through or along the edges of welds, flaws in the metallic bridge element 30 (e.g., scratches, wrinkles, etc.), flaws in the substrate(s) 14, 16 (e.g., scratches), and misalignment. As such, the first stage seal 38 may be made in a less costly manner (e.g., with lower manufacturing tolerances, fewer quality control tests, etc.) while contributing to effective overall hermetic sealing performance. In some embodiments, the two-stage seal element 22 may also provide the sealed product with a longer useful life. As illustrated in FIG. 9, it should be appreciated that the second stage seal 40 also may repair (that is, eliminate leakage due to) flaws 50 that may exist in the first stage seal 38 (e.g., by filling voids and microleaks, etc.).

[0042] Because the second stage seal 40 may be at least partially inboard of the first stage seal 38 in some embodiments, gases that may become trapped therebetween or at the interface of the bridge element 30 and the substrate(s) 14, 16 cannot communicate with the interior space 18 to be evacuated. This can advantageously result in faster pump-down of the interior space 18. In addition, when solderglass is used as the sealing material 34, the second stage seal 40 can dissolve an adjacent portion of certain commonly-used coatings on the substrate(s) 14, 16 (such as a low-emissivity coating), providing a barrier against progression of corrosion that may take place along the coating and thereby protecting the evacuated interior space 18.

[0043] A significant advantage of the two-stage seal element 22 according to embodiments described and illustrated herein is that the metal bridge element 30 is in both physical and bonded contact with the non-metal substrate. This provides improved sealing performance.

[0044] In some embodiments, the two-stage seal element 22 may provide a convenient chamber to accommodate a getter ribbon or getter particles, which remove residual gases from the evacuated interior space. Such a chamber may inhibit the getter material from migrating into a visible area of the product after the getter has reacted.

[0045] In some embodiments (e.g., FIG. 1), the second stage seal 40 may maintain a gap between opposing portions of the metallic bridge element 30, thereby inhibiting heat transfer between the two substrates 14, 16 that may occur due to conduction through the metallic bridge element 30.

[0046] In some embodiments, the two-stage seal element 22 advantageously allows the metallic bridge element 30 to be formed using foil ribbon segments (as shown in FIG. 10), rather than using full face foil, which would be subsequently trimmed inboard of the seal element 22. Because foil ribbon is connected at comers or other transitions using welded joints 54, the first stage seal 38 may be more likely to experience a defect causing a local reduction of hermeticity in the region of the welded joint 54. The second stage seal 40 can seal any such defects to improve the overall hermeticity of the seal element. [0047] While FIGS. 1-8 illustrate portions of exemplary products including a two-stage seal element, it will be appreciated that other products can include the seal element (e.g., flat panel displays). As such, the invention described and claimed herein should not be construed to encompass only window assemblies.

[0048] It is understood that the invention may embody other specific forms, or incorporate combinations of the embodiments described herein, without departing from the spirit or characteristics the invention. While specific embodiments have been illustrated and described, other modifications may be made without significantly departing from the spirit of the invention.

[0049] Various features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.