There is a misconception that glass is necessarily fragile and vulnerable, and companies that deal in structural glass understand that this is not true.

Most glass used in windows is necessarily stronger than you might expect, as whilst glass tends to have a tensile strength of around 1,000 psi, theoretically it can have a tensile strength as high as 2.5m psi, and whilst that level of strength is unlikely in practical use, it shows that glass is tougher than you think

Glass can be used as a structural material, large sheets can be used with minimal structural support and the right formulation can even be used to shield against explosions.

Blast-resistant glass, otherwise known as bomb-proof glass are sheets of glass coated with a polycarbonate solution, typically taking the form of a laminate layer.

Much like with the safety glass used in car windscreens, the glass can shatter but is held together by a laminate coating that prevents one of the most common injuries in a building explosion.

Whilst an explosion by itself is obviously deadly, the biggest danger for people not directly in the blast radius is flying debris and sharp glass shards caused by the aftershocks and shockwaves of the explosion.

The blast-resistant glass therefore keeps all of the shards in place and in combination with a similarly bombproof frame, the shattered glass will be kept in place after the impact to provide some additional albeit rudimentary protection.

Blast-resistant glass is used in buildings where the chance of accidental or deliberate explosion is likely.

The former is typically seen in manufacturing plants and chemical storage facilities, where the glass will be tempered according to the needs of the particular manufacturer.

Meanwhile, the latter is typically seen as part of high-value security systems for commonly targeted buildings such as banks, government buildings and jewellers, wherever there is considered to be a risk of explosions.