| It should however be noted that excessive treatment can embrittle the substrate or even destroy the superficial coating. |
| Oxygen is able to embrittle beryllium, but there is no quantitative measure of the effect. |
| After use and disposal, exposure to UV light, heat, and moisture makes the caps embrittle and break down into small pieces. |
| Sunlight and seawater embrittle plastic, and the eventual breakdown of larger objects makes it available to zooplankton and other small marine animals. |
| Above that, they will embrittle and cease to function as intended. |
| Hydrogen is a concern in metallurgy as it can embrittle many metals, complicating the design of pipelines and storage tanks. |
