It’s easy to take received information as truth, especially if it sounds believable and has been backed up by people or ‘facts’ over time. Glass itself is something that has a particular myth around it that should be put to rest once and for all.
Is glass considered a true solid?
‘During solidification, the molecules in most substances settle into a crystalline structure. But under a microscope, scientists noticed that glass, when cooling from a malleable, heated state, never quite achieves this crystallization, and seems to keep flowing, albeit extremely slowly. For years, this puzzled researchers, and glass was referred to as an “amorphous solid.” While the “glass-never-truly-solidifies” concept has apparently been challenged for decades, a paper just published in Nature Communications journal combined research from the University of Bristol and Kyoto University to finally settle the issue.
Though under a ‘scope, glass appears to keep moving even after it cools and feels solid to the touch, the atoms are actually very slowly arranging themselves into geometric shapes, like icosahedra, increasing the solid regions of the material over time. Dr. Paddy Royall, of University of Bristol’s Schools of Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, told Science Daily: “We found that the size of the solid regions of icosahedra would grow until eventually there would be no more liquid regions and so the glass should be a true solid.”‘ (Jed Oelbaum, good.is)
So yes, glass is indeed considered a solid (if you ever had any doubt). Here at Cornwall Glass your Cornwall glass specialist we can help your glass project. Contact us to learn more!