Scratchability of Soda-Lime Silica (SLS) Glasses: Dynamic Fracture Analysis

Abstract

Grinding and polishing are widely used for glass machining with fine finished surfaces. These processes result from abrasion due to repeated contacts between hard sliding particles and the glass surface. The study of contact mechanics problem is of fundamental interest to understand the process of material removal in glasses. In order to get insight into this problem, an experimental set up was designed which allows a monotonic loading of the indenter combined with a controlled sliding of the specimen to simulate a slow abrasive machining process. In addition, the experiments are conducted with an in-situ video monitoring that allows for the observation of the different fracture phenomena beneath the indenter. Fracture surfaces were also studied using SEM and AFM for multi-scale investigation. Fracture analysis was carried on a standard float glass, four different SLS glasses and a fused silica glass. The observed phenomena were discussed in the light of the influence of the normal load and the chemical composition.