brytbar

Brytbar is a Swedish adjective meaning fragile or breakable, i.e., something that can be broken with relatively little force. The related noun brytbarhet denotes the property of ease of fracture, often translated as fragility or breakability. The word is formed from the verb bryta, “to break,” combined with the suffix -bar, which marks capability.

In everyday language brytbar describes objects such as glass, porcelain, thin ice, or dry pasta—things that tend to fracture rather than deform plastically when subjected to stress. In a scientific or engineering context, brytbarhet is closely related to the concept of brittleness, a material property that characterizes how a material fails with minimal plastic deformation. Brittle materials tend to fracture suddenly under stress, sometimes with little warning.

Brittleness is influenced by factors including temperature, loading rate, and microstructure. Some materials become more brittle at low temperatures, while others may exhibit greater ductility at higher temperatures. Measurements of brittle behaviour are performed with impact or fracture tests such as the Charpy or Izod tests, and results are reported as part of a material’s mechanical properties.

The term brytbar is often discussed in relation to durability and ductility, attributes described by words such as hållbarhet (durability) and duktilitet (ductility). Related concepts include sprödhet (brittleness) and duktilitet, which help distinguish how materials respond to stress and fracture.