Abstract:
Toughened glass panels used as a glazing material in multi storey buildings are known to fracture
prematurely when they contain nickel sulfide inclusions as a result of the α-β phase recrystallisation
in nickel sulfide. The kinetics of this recrystallisation were studied by differential scanning calorimetry
(DSC) under isothermal and non-isothermal conditions. The recrystallisation was observed to
be a two-step process with an induction period followed by the phase change. A two-stage kinetic
model was used to estimate the recrystallisation time under ambient conditions. These values were
found to correlate well with the observed time to failure for glass panels installed in multistorey
buildings.
