Fracture mechanics.
Unfortunately, the theory of fracture mechanics in brittle materials is quite laborious - though interesting. Fortunately, we already have an excellent start on the subject in our article on fracture mechanics. Key texts in this field have been authored by R.W.Davidge, Brian Lawn and David Green as part of the Cambridge Solid State Science Series, with UCSB's A.G 'Tony' Evans from Princeton on the cutting edge in the field of composite materials. Based on the texts alone, we could easily double (or even triple) the size of the current article to include additional key factors, such as the movement of dislocations (and other microstructural features), the local chemistry in the vicinity of a crack tip, and their net impact on creep, fatigue, plastic deformation and crack tip propagation in glasses and glass-ceramics.
Things to do, Glass Physics:
Some of the articles do not contain any section understandable for a layman, for example Viscosity of amorphous materials, Physics of glass, or Glass transition. However, an encyclopedia should, besides providing highly technical information, also be accessible to the public and arose interest in beginning students.
Expansion of the article about Ernst Abbe, whose optics research, such as about the Abbe sine condition stimulated the beginning of glass science because high-quality glasses with specific optical properties were desired for practical tests, leading finally to a strong development of the company of Carl Zeiss.
Preparation of a task force Optics, based on the old project.
Glass chemistry is important for environmetal protection, e.g., for glass recycling, for developing lead-free crystal glasses, fiberglasses with reduced boron content, glasses free or arsenic, antimony, barium, and strontium for flat panel display substrates, and radioactive waste vitrification strategies.
The Sol-gel technique may be used for making bulk glasses of unusual composition that can not be obtained otherwise by the traditional melting. In addition, coatings may be prepared by the sol-gel technique.
Glass-ceramics are made as glasses by melting. However, afterwards a tempering step leads to devitrification, to crystallization. Glass-ceramics may have improved fracture toughness and thermal shock resistance compared to normal glass.
Porous glass, made by phase separation of sodium borosilicate glass or similar compositions, continues to be one of the most investigated amorphous solids, applied in industry, medicine, pharmacy research, biotechnology and sensor technology.
Hollow glass microspheres are used, among else, as lightweight filler in composite materials, and serve as storage and slow release medium for pharmaceuticals, radioactive tracers, and hydrogen.
The chemical analysis of glass compositions (in particular for archeological purposes) is discussed in the article Robert H. Brill.
Further glass engineering & technology topics and things to do
Things to do, Glass Engineering & Technology:
The article Glass production is in need of attention. It shortly deals with commercial glass melting and then with glass container production. Flat glass production is in a separate article, however. Therefore, on the discussion page of the glass production article it is suggested to split the glass container production off.
Geology, glass in nature: Glass is forming in nature during high-temperature events involving silicate compounds, followed by rapid cooling, as it occurs during volcanic eruptions (see volcanic glass such as obsidian), meteorite impacts (e.g., tektite), and lightning strikes (e.g., fulgurite). The categories Glass in nature and Vitreous rocks contain all glass articles relevant to geology.
Further topics and things to do, glass in geology and nature
