Abstract
The fracture toughness of a commercial soda–lime– silica glass has been measured by the Vickers indentation method at four different indentation loads between 1·96 and 9·8 N and four different indentation times between 15 and 30 s. Indentation fracture toughness (IFT) values were calculated using 14 different formulae based on the Palmqvist crack model, the median crack model, and the curve fitting approach. An assessment of the compatibility of the IFT values determined from identical measurements indicates that four formulae based on the curve fitting approach and the Palmqvist crack model yielded an IFT of 0·89 ± 0·02 MPa m1/2 at an indentation load of 1·96 N. A different set of formulae based on all types of approach yielded an IFT of 1·00 ± 0·02 MPa m1/2 at an indentation load of 9·8 N. The calculated value of IFT for the soda–lime–silica glass at 1·96 N is in close agreement with its reported fracture toughness measured by the standard conventional test. Plots of the dimensionless fracture toughness parameter against crack/indentation ratios did not reveal the nature of the cracks in the material. The influence of load on IFT is more significant than that of time. The observed variations in IFT with indentation load in the soda– lime–silica glass compared with similar variations for α-silica carbide indicates that the load dependence of IFT in brittle solids is governed by the degree of crystallinity of the material.