Theoretically is glass one of the strongest materials. However, due to surface defects inevitably formed during manufacturing, transport, handling and use of glass, the practical strength is greatly limited by stress-concentrations at crack tips under tension. Glass has limited fracture toughness which gives a practical strength that spans over several orders of magnitude. Despite this is glass used in a wide range of applications, where architectural and automotive are among the most apparent applications for the general public. The unreliable strength requires an unnecessary thick glass and this has a direct consequence on the sustainability fingerprint. The recent advances and an outlook on improving the practical strength of glass are presented including the improvement of surface quality, improving mechanical properties, and strengthening of glass together with a concept of non-destructive testing (NDT) of the glass strength. NDT of glass is a game-changer that, among other things, enables quality-sorting in the glass industry.
Stefan Karlsson
Towards practically stronger glass – recent advances and outlook
Company: RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, Växjö, Sweden
About the speaker:
Stefan Karlsson is a Senior Scientist at RISE Research Institutes of Sweden, the Glass Unit of the Department for Materials and Surface Design. He holds a BSc in Chemical Engineering (2006) from Växjö University, Sweden and a PhD in Glass Technology (2012) from Linnaeus University, Sweden. He has been granted FORMAS Future Research Leader 2019-2023 and been awarded a Marie-Curie Fellowship (2014-2015). He was the Coordinator of the Solar-ERA.NET project LIMES – Light Innovative Materials for Enhanced Solar Efficiency (2014-2017) and is the author of more than 25 peer-reviewed scientific papers.