Polycarbonate sheet offers better thermal insulation than glass and is significantly lighter, which can reduce shipping costs and simplify installation. For window manufacturers exploring alternatives to traditional glass, polycarbonate presents a compelling opportunity—especially when combined with advanced energy-efficiency coatings.
This guide examines polycarbonate’s material properties compared to glass, acrylic, and other transparent substrates, and explores how NxLite’s pioneering low-E coating solutions overcome traditional limitations to unlock new opportunities for energy-efficient polycarbonate windows.
Unlike glass, polycarbonate is virtually unbreakable—offering up to 250 times the impact resistance of standard glass. This makes it ideal for applications where safety, weight savings, and durability are priorities, such as skylights, greenhouse glazing, transportation windows, and security panels.
Key advantages of polycarbonate for window applications include:
- Up to 250x the impact resistance of glass, making it virtually unbreakable.
- Approximately 50% lighter than glass, reducing structural load and shipping costs.
- Superior thermal insulation properties compared to single-pane glass.
- Flexibility in design—polycarbonate can be thermoformed into curved and complex shapes.
Historically, applying low-emissivity coatings to polycarbonate has been a major challenge. Traditional sputtered low-E coatings used in glass IGUs require sealed, inert-gas environments to maintain performance—conditions incompatible with polycarbonate’s material properties. NxLite has pioneered breakthrough coating solutions that overcome these barriers.
NxLite’s proprietary air-stable, silver-based sputter coatings can be applied directly to polycarbonate and acrylic substrates. Unlike conventional low-E coatings, NxLite coatings maintain their performance in open-air (monolithic) applications without requiring sealed IGU construction. This is a game-changer for the industry.
Polycarbonate windows with NxLite coatings help commercial buildings meet stringent energy codes for new construction and provide thermal, comfort, and noise improvements on existing buildings for retrofit glazing applications.
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