History
The first patent on tempered glass was held by chemist Rudolph A. Seiden, born in 1900 in Austria.
Though the underlying mechanism was not known at the time, the effects of "tempering" glass have been known for centuries. In about 1660, Prince Rupert of the Rhine brought the discovery of what are now known as "Prince Rupert's Drops" to the attention of King Charles II. These are teardrop shaped bits of glass which are produced by allowing a molten drop of glass to fall into a bucket of water, thereby rapidly cooling it. They have the curious ability to withstand a blow from a hammer on the bulbous end without breaking, but the drops will disintegrate explosively if the tail end is even slightly damaged. The teardrops were often used by the King as a practical joke.
Read more about this topic: Toughened Glass
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