Prince Rupert's Drops: An analysis of fragmentation by thermal stresses and quench granulation of glass and bubbly glass.

ABSTRACT: When volcanic eruptions involve interaction with external water (hydrovolcanism), the result is an ash-rich and energetic volcanic plume, as illustrated dramatically by the January 2022 Tonga eruption. The origin of the high explosive energy of these events remains an important question. We investigate this question by studying Prince Rupert's Drops (PRDs)-tadpole-shaped glass beads formed by dripping molten glass into water-which have long fascinated materials scientists because the great strength of the head contrasts with the explosivity of the metastable interior when the tail is broken. We show that the fragment size distribution (FSD) produced by explosive fragmentation changes systematically with PRD fragmentation in air, water, and syrup. Most FSDs are fractal over much of the size

SUBMITTER: Cashman KV 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9351460 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature