In 1991, researchers at Berkeley Lab invented a triple-glazed window they hoped would revolutionise the building industry. Though windows with three panes had existed for years, what distinguished Berkley’s design from precursors was the presence of a centralised, thin layer of glass. This made the window lighter, as less material could be used to make the external panes. It also made the window more energy efficient, as compartments either side of the central layer could be filled with insulating gas. On paper, the window had the potential to cut annual heating bills by 39 percent and reduce air conditioning costs by 28 percent. The only problem was that it was prohibitively expensive to manufacture.
Berkley’s design remained "unmanufacturable" for decades. But in recent years, thanks to a marked drop in thin glass manufacturing costs, brought on by the rise of mobile phones and LCD screens, thin triple-glazed windows are now a viable option for reducing energy use.
According to a 2019 survey, approximately two-thirds of New York City’s greenhouse gas emissions come from building heat and cooling losses. If big cities like New York installed triple-glazed windows in all newly built houses, think of how much energy we could save.