A lot of us have at times wished for more endurable glass. Researchers have now managed to create a new type of glass that’s three times more resilient than normal glass and five times more fracture resistant. The team who developed this new type of glass was inspired by the structures from the inner layer of a mollusk shell.
This new glass is based on the tough material that makes up the shell of the mollusk known as nacre, but some probably know it as “mother of pearl”. The new material is a mixture of glass and acrylic composite, which makes it both flexible and rigid.
“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,” said researcher Allen Ehrlicher to Futurity.
Unlike other techniques and methods tried out to make glass more durable, this glass is break-resistant as well as affordable and easy to produce. Now, the scientists hope their product will be used to replace cell phone glass and other components for electronics. Going forward, the team is working on scaling up the production along with altering the material's color, mechanics, and conductivity properties.
Getting inspiration from nature in order to produce an improved product is a great way to make the future come sooner.
