Crack arrest and multiple cracking in class through the use of designed residual stress profiles

A processing approach has been identified and reduced to practice in which a residual stress profile can be designed such that cracks in a brittle mat erial are arrested or grow in a stable manner. In the approach, cracks in t he body encounter an increase in the magnitude of residual compression as t he crack propagates. If correctly designed, the process increases strength and significantly decreases strength variability. This approach was demonst rated for a silicate grass, and multiple cracking was observed as a forewar ning of the final failure. Normally, such glasses would fail catastrophical ly with the propagation of a dominant crack.