The subsurface damage (SSD) introduced during bound abrasive grinding of fused silica glass was measured using a wet etch technique. Various process parameters and grinding configurations were studied. The relation between the SSD depth, the process parameters and forces applied by the grinding wheel on the sample was investigated and compared to a simulation using a discrete element method to model the grinding interface. The results reveal a relation between the SSD depth and the grinding forces normalized by the abrasive concentration. Regarding the creation of the SSD, numerical simulations indicate that only a small fraction of the largest particles in the diamond wheel are responsible for the depth of the damaged layer. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.