Which risk increased in the Uruk period when early Mesopotamian bronze chisels encountered harder stones?

💡 Explanation

When bronze chisels encountered harder stones, intergranular fracture risk increased because arsenical impurities tend to segregate to grain boundaries, weakening the metal and causing cracks to propagate along these boundaries when stress is applied. Therefore, intergranular fracture risk increases, rather than oxidation, tearing, or hardening, which require different material properties and mechanisms.

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