Abstract: Cold bending is a new construction method with good application prospects for curved glass curtain wall. To study the mechanical response of cold-bent insulating glass plates, a single curved cold bending experiment was carried out on the insulating glass plates, and the experiment considered the influence of different cold-bent curvatures, glass thicknesses, and cavity thicknesses on the principal stress and inter-layer displacement. Based on the experiment, the finite element numerical simulation of the cold-bent insulating glass plates was carried out. The results show that the principal stress distribution of each surface of the cold-bent insulating glass is uneven；the maximum cold bending principal stress of the glass plate locates on middle point of long side of the convex surface which is most likely to produce damage stress, and the restraint of the spacer bars can cause the displacement of extreme principal stress point on the inner surfaces；the cold bending curvature has the most significant effect on the cold bending principal stress and interlayer displacement of the insulating glass, while the cavity thickness and the glass thickness have smaller effect. The finite element model method and parameters adopted in this study can well simulate the results of the experiment, even though the results is a little conservative. The research results can provide references for the design and construction of single curved cold bend insulating glass.

Key words: cold bending, insulating glass, mechanical behavior, finite element method