Unbreakable glass inspired by seashells

Date:
September 28, 2021
Source:
McGill University
Summary:
Scientists develop stronger and tougher glass, inspired by the
inner layer of mollusk shells. Instead of shattering upon impact,
the new material has the resiliency of plastic and could be used to
improve cell phone screens in the future, among other applications.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Scientists from McGill University develop stronger and tougher glass,
inspired by the inner layer of mollusk shells. Instead of shattering upon impact, the new material has the resiliency of plastic and could be used
to improve cell phone screens in the future, among other applications.


========================================================================== While techniques like tempering and laminating can help reinforce glass,
they are costly and no longer work once the surface is damaged. "Until
now there were trade-offs between high strength, toughness, and
transparency. Our new material is not only three times stronger than the
normal glass, but also more than five times more fracture resistant,"
says Allen Ehrlicher, an Associate Professor in the Department of Bioengineering at McGill University.

Nature as master of design Drawing inspiration from nature, the scientist created a new glass and acrylic composite material that mimics nacre or
mother of pearl. "Nature is a master of design. Studying the structure of biological materials and understanding how they work offers inspiration,
and sometimes blueprints, for new materials," says Ehrlicher.

"Amazingly, nacre has the rigidity of a stiff material and durability of a
soft material, giving it the best of both worlds," he explains. "It's made
of stiff pieces of chalk-like matter that are layered with soft proteins
that are highly elastic. This structure produces exceptional strength,
making it 3000 times tougher than the materials that compose it."
The scientists took the architecture of nacre and replicated it with
layers of glass flakes and acrylic, yielding an exceptionally strong
yet opaque material that can be produced easily and inexpensively. They
then went a step further to make the composite optically transparent. "By tuning the refractive index of the acrylic, we made it seamlessly blend
with the glass to make a truly transparent composite," says lead author
Ali Amini, a Postdoctoral Researcher at McGill. As next steps, they plan
to improve it by incorporating smart technology allowing the glass to
change its properties, such as colour, mechanics, and conductivity.

Lost invention of flexible glass Flexible glass is supposedly a lost
invention from the time of the reign of the Roman Emperor Tiberius
Caesar. According to popular historical accounts by Roman authors Gaius
Plinius Secundus and Petronius, the inventor brought a drinking bowl
made of the material before the Emperor. When the bowl was put to the
test to break it, it only dented instead of shattering.

After the inventor swore he was the only person who knew how to produce
the material, Tiberius had the man executed, fearing that the glass
would devalue gold and silver because it might be more valuable.

"When I think about the story of Tiberius, I'm glad that our material innovation leads to publication rather than execution," says Ehrlicher.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by McGill_University. Note: Content
may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Ali Amini, Adele Khavari, Francois Barthelat, Allen J. Ehrlicher.

Centrifugation and index matching yield a strong and transparent
bioinspired nacreous composite. Science, 2021; 373 (6560): 1229
DOI: 10.1126/science.abf0277 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/09/210928121327.htm

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