Silicate-based glasses have played a vital role in human civilization for centuries, marked by their long-lasting dependability and resistance to weathering. While silicate glasses form the basis for most everyday applications, glasses containing multiple network-forming oxides (including SiO₂, B₂O₃, P₂O₅, and Al₂O₃) comprise the vast majority of technological applications.

Whereas specific industrial glass applications may seek wide-ranging properties (such as crack resistance and thermal stability), nearly every commercial application requires understanding of reactions to a given chemical environment. In this regard, predicting chemical durability of multicomponent silicate glasses in various conditions is essential to develop new functional glass compositions that perform under diverse environments.