Prince Rupert’s Drops are glass teardrops made by dropping molten glass into cold water. The outside cools quickly, while the inside takes longer, creating a state of tension. The head cannot be broken, but if the tail is damaged, the drop will explode. They are named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine and are an early version of tempered glass. They can be seen in glass and science museums, but should not be made at home.
A Prince Rupert’s Drop is a very intriguing glass curiosity which displays a number of unusual properties. These glass oddities are also known as Dutch Tears, Batavia Tears, Tzar’s Tears or Prince Rupert’s Balls, and are often displayed in glass museums. The precise nature of Prince Rupert’s Drop has been a mystery for some time; only after the development of high-speed video did people truly understand what was going on when a Prince Rupert’s Drop was broken.
To make a Prince Rupert drop, a small piece of molten glass is dropped into a bucket of extremely cold water while the glass is still hot. The glass forms a distinctive teardrop shape, with a fat head and a long curved tail. Cold water causes the outside of the glass to cool extremely quickly, while the hot glass inside the brush head takes longer to cool. When it cools, it contracts and creates a state of tension in Prince Rupert’s Drop.
No matter how hard you try, you can’t break the head off a Prince Rupert’s Drop. Glass can be hammered, pinched with pliers, and put through a series of mechanical tests, but the glass will still hold, because the state of stress is so high. If, however, the tail of Prince Rupert’s Drop is damaged in any way, the entire item will explode, because the voltage has been cut. And “explode” really is the right word to use, as a drop of Prince Rupert will shatter explosively when the tail is damaged.
Prince Rupert’s drop is named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine, a German prince who is credited with developing this glass curiosity. According to legend, Prince Rupert enjoyed using Prince Rupert’s drop as a joke, handing it to members of the court and then pulling it by the tail so that the glass exploded in the hand of the unwary victim. One might assume that people became wary of accepting gifts from the fun-loving prince after that.
The mechanics of the Prince Rupert’s Drop are quite interesting, and this new piece of glass is an early version of tempered glass, which is now used to make a wide variety of things, from laboratory glassware to car windows. You can see demonstrations of Prince Rupert’s drops at many science museums and glass museums if you’re interested; Unless you have experience working with glass, this is a trick you shouldn’t try at home, as glass shards can be very dangerous, especially if inhaled.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
