Manufacture of new 6mm thick explosion-proof glass

Scientists in the United States and Australia are developing a glass that is particularly light and thinner than traditional glass but very hard to not break into small pieces in explosions or earthquakes.

The Science Daily page quoted a Pentagon report on the 1996 Khobar Tower bombing in Saudi Arabia, saying that of the 19 people who died from injuries, two died of glass wounds. .

Scientists are testing the durability of new types of glass. ( Photo: ScienceDaily )

Of the remaining 17 people, broken glass pieces can cause death for 10 people, even if they do not suffer from other serious injuries. Thus, broken glass pieces are an important factor causing the deaths of 12 of these 19 people.

Installing explosion-proof glass in buildings can save many lives in case of terrorist attacks or natural disasters. However, the current explosion-proof glass technology used in government buildings or presidential cars is very thick and difficult to install commonly in ordinary window frames.

Therefore, scientists at the University of Missouri and the University of Sydney in Australia have sought to develop a new unique explosion-proof glass . This type of glass is particularly light, much thinner than traditional glass. However, they are very hard and do not crumble when encountering explosions or natural disasters such as earthquakes and storms.

Unlike the current explosion-proof glass made of a layer of transparent polymer sandwiched between two slides, the new explosion-proof glass is created by replacing this polymer with a layer of transparent composite material.

This composite material is made of very small glass fibers, about 15-25 micrometers in diameter. This makes the new explosion-proof glass very thin (each glass is only about 6 mm thick) and fewer errors. Thus, it is much tougher and more durable than traditional explosion-proof glass.

Recently, scientists have tried their new glasses with a small explosion. ' The results are amazing, ' said Sanjeev Khanna, a professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Missouri . ' While the back of the window is cracked, its front is almost unaffected.' Looking ahead, Sanjeev's group will continue to experiment with larger sizes of new glasses.

With the superiority of both features and production costs, scientists hope that the new glass they are making can become a commercially popular glass in the future.

' Making an easy-to-install, easy-to-install explosion-proof glass can stimulate the need for this type of glass in civil works. From there, it can better protect people's lives against current threats and dangers, 'said John Fortune, Project Manager.