Researchers from Rice University in Houston, Texas, have developed a new computer model to explain why metallic glass is prone to breaking along shear bands. Peter Wolynes, Rice physicist, and Apiwat Wisitsorasak, former graduate student, recently published a paper that explains how to calculate how glass warps over time when put under stress. According to the researchers, two factors lead to the shear bands where glass may break: weakness from when the glass is formed and randomness of the chemical reactions. Based on these factors, the researchers were able to build a model to predict the likelihood that a glass may fail in certain areas. The paper was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

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