Fractographic Evaluation of Glass Bottle Failure: Distinguishing Impact Damage from Over-Pressurization

Fractographic analysis is a powerful tool for determining failure mechanisms in brittle materials, even when only limited evidence is available. In this study, a fragment of a glass bottle was examined to assess whether failure resulted from internal over-pressurization associated with a carbonated liquid. An initial hypothesis suggested that manufacturing-related wall thinning may have led to structural weakness and subsequent rupture under pressure.

Due to the limited size and quantity of the recovered sample, available fractographic features were sparse. Nevertheless, detailed examination of the fracture surfaces provided critical insights into the failure mechanism. The observed crack morphology did not exhibit characteristics typically associated with over-pressurization in glass containers. Furthermore, crack propagation features indicated an origin at the interior surface and progressing outward, which is inconsistent with conventional over-pressurization failures in glass bottles, which generally initiate at the exterior surface and propagate inward.

Importantly, the presence of a cone crack, a fracture feature commonly associated with localized blunt impact, was identified. This observation, combined with the atypical crack path and morphology, strongly supports an impact-induced failure mechanism rather than a pressure-driven event.

The findings demonstrate that even with limited physical evidence, systematic fractographic evaluation can yield reliable conclusions regarding the origin and cause of failure. This study highlights the importance of fracture surface interpretation in distinguishing between competing failure hypotheses in brittle materials such as glass.