INTRODUCTION

Ceramic materials can be defined as inorganic materials constituted by the

combination of metallic and nonmetallic elements whose properties depend on
the way in which these elements are linked. Ceramic materials are the most
versatile branch of materials. The origin of this versatility lies in the chemical
nature of its bonds, since they are mainly constituted by strong ionic and
covalent bonds in different proportions. The bonds determine a series of
particular properties of ceramic materials among which are relatively high
fusion temperatures, high modulus, high wear strength, poor thermal properties,
high hardness and fragilities combined with tenacities, and low ductility. In
addition to the lack of conduction electrons since they are combined forming
chemical bonds, they are good electrical insulators.
Ceramic materials can be divided into two large groups: traditional ceramics
and technical or advanced ceramics. Traditional ceramics can be defined as
those that are based on silicates, among which are cement, clay products, and
refractories. Traditional ceramics are produced in large volumes and constitute
an important market. Traditional ceramic materials are made with raw materials
from natural deposits such as clay materials. The second group, technical or
advanced ceramics, is manufactured with artificial raw materials that have
undergone an important chemical processing to achieve a high purity and an
improvement of their physical characteristics. Therefore, they are manufactured
with more advanced and sophisticated methods. Among them are carbides,
nitrides, borides, pure oxides, and a great variety of ceramics with magnetic,
ferroelectric, piezoelectric, and superconducting applications, among others.
These ceramics possess excellent mechanical properties under extreme
conditions of tension, high wear strength or excellent electrical, magnetic, or
optical properties, or exceptional strength to high temperatures and corrosive
environments, showing high strength to chemical attack.
Crystalline ceramic materials are not amenable to a great range of processing.
Methods for dealing with them tend to fall into one of two categories – Ceramic
forming techniques include shaping by hand (sometimes including a rotation
process called “throwing”), slip casting, injection moulding, dry pressing etc.
Some elements such as carbon and silicon may be considered as ceramics.
Traditional ceramic raw materials include clay minerals such as kaolinite,
whereas more recent materials include aluminum oxide, known as alumina and
also include silicon carbide and tungsten carbide. Ceramic materials are brittle,
hard, and strong in compression, weak in shearing and tension.
Manufacturing of the ceramic components involves the synthesis of the powder,
mixing, shaping, and thermal treatment in which the sintering takes place either
by diffusion in solid state or by formation of intergranular-liquid phase.
Ceramic powders are obtained either from the treatment of natural raw materials
(rock minerals) or through synthetic routes such as sol-gel, self-propagated
synthesis at high temperature (SHS), precipitation, etc.
Therefore, it can be concluded that ceramic materials have a great versatility of
applications, because they have very characteristic properties that cannot be
obtained from any other material.
CERAMIC PROCESSING
Ceramic processing is used to produce commercial products that are very
diverse in size, shape, detail, complexity, and material composition, structure,
and cost. The purpose of ceramics processing to an applied science is the natural
result of an increasing ability to refine, develop, and characterize ceramic
materials. Ceramics are typically produced by the application of heat upon
processed clays and other natural raw materials to form a rigid product.
Ceramic products that use naturally occurring rocks and minerals as a starting
material must undergo special processing in order to control purity, particle
size, particle size distribution, and heterogeneity. These attributes play a big role
in the final properties of the finished ceramic. Chemically prepared powders
also are used as starting materials for some ceramic products. These synthetic
materials can be controlled to produce powders with precise chemical
compositions and particle size.
The next step is to form the ceramic particles into a desired shape. This is
accomplished by the addition of water and/or additives such as binders,
followed by a shape forming process. Some of the most common forming
methods for ceramics include extrusion, slip casting, pressing, tape casting and
injection molding. After the particles are formed, these "green" ceramics
undergo a heat-treatment (called firing or sintering) to produce a rigid, finished
product. Some ceramic products such as electrical insulators, dinnerware and
tile may then undergo a glazing process. Some ceramics for advanced
applications may undergo a machining and/or polishing step in order meet
specific engineering design criteria.
CERAMIC PRODUCTS
 Clay construction products - bricks, clay pipe, and building tile
 Refractory ceramics - ceramics capable of high temperature applications
such as furnace walls, crucibles, and molds
 Cement used in concrete - used for construction and roads
 White ware products - pottery, stoneware, fine china, porcelain, and other
tableware, based on mixtures of clay and other minerals
 Glass - bottles, glasses, lenses, window pane, and light bulbs
 Glass fibers - thermal insulating wool, reinforced plastics (fiberglass),
and fiber optics communications lines
 Abrasives - aluminum oxide and silicon carbide
 Cutting tool materials - tungsten carbide, aluminum oxide, and cubic
boron nitride
 Ceramic insulators - applications include electrical transmission
components, spark plugs, and microelectronic chip substrates
  Magnetic ceramics –example: computer memories
 Nuclear fuels based on uranium oxide (UO2 ) •Bioceramics - artificial
teeth and bones
PROPERTIES OF CERAMICS
 Ceramics can withstand high temperatures, are good thermal insulators,
and do not expand greatly when heated. This makes them excellent
thermal barriers, for applications that range from lining industrial
furnaces to covering the space shuttle to protect it from high reentry
temperatures.
 Glasses are transparent, amorphous ceramics that are widely used in
windows, lenses, and many other familiar applications. Light can induce
an electrical response in some ceramics, called photoconductivity. Fiber
optic cable is rapidly replacing copper for communications, as optical
fibers can carry more information for longer distances with less
interference and signal loss than traditional copper wires
 Ceramics are strong, hard, and durable. This makes them attractive
structural materials. The one significant drawback is their brittleness, but
this problem is being addressed by the development of new materials
such as composites.
 Ceramics vary in electrical properties from excellent insulators to
superconductors. Thus, they are used in a wide range of applications.
Some are capacitors, others semiconductors in electronic devices.
TYPES OF CERAMIC MATERIAL
Crystalline ceramics
Crystalline ceramic materials are not amenable to a great range of processing.
Methods for dealing with them tend to fall into one of two categories – either
make the ceramic in the desired shape, by reaction in situ, or by "forming"
powders into the desired shape, and then sintering to form a solid body.
Ceramic forming techniques include shaping by hand (sometimes including a
rotation process called "throwing"), slip casting, tape casting (used for making
very thin ceramic capacitors, e.g.),injection molding, dry pressing, and other
variations.
Noncrystalline ceramics
Noncrystalline ceramics, being glass, tend to be formed from melts. The glass is
shaped when either fully molten, by casting, or when in a state of toffee-like
viscosity, by methods such as blowing into a mold. If later heat treatments cause
this glass to become partly crystalline, the resulting material is known as a
glass-ceramic, widely used as cook-top and also as a glass composite material
for nuclear waste disposal.
USES OF CERAMICS
Ceramic products are hard, porous, and brittle. As a result, they are used to
make pottery, bricks, tiles, cements, and glass. Ceramics are also used at many
places in gas turbine engines. Bio-ceramics are used as dental implants and
synthetic bones. Given below are some other important uses of ceramics.
Uses as Whitewares
Whitewares find application in spark plugs, electrical insulators, laboratory
equipments, crucibles, dishes, and high-class potteries.
Uses as Clay
Clay is the starting raw material for manufacturing bricks, tiles, terracotta,
pottery, earthenwares, sewer, drain pipes, and covers for electrical cables.
Uses as Stonewares
Stonewares are used for constructing sanitary fixtures, such as sinks and bath
tubs. Stonewares are also used in the construction of piping vessels, drainage
pipes, underground cable sheathings, sewerage pipes, home pipes, absorption
towers, valves, and pumps in the chemical industry. They are cheaper than
many other construction materials but are rather fragile and once broken, they
have no resale value.
Uses as Glass
The main use of glass is to make household glassware, decorative items, and
optical lenses. Glasses are used for heat insulation purposes, for example, in
ovens. Glass is used as an insulator in metal pipelines, in vacuum cleaners, and
on the walls and roofs of houses. Glass is resistant to chemicals. As a result, it is
used to filter corrosive liquids such as acids and acid solutions. It is also used
for sound insulation. Safety glass is used in aircraft, automobiles, helicopter,
and submarines.
CONCLUSION
Ceramics are compounds of metallic and nonmetallic elements possess high
hardness, high compressive strength, high elastic modulus, low thermal
expansion, low density etc. It is possible to obtain ceramic materials of any
required properties, mechanical, electrical, chemical or magnetic by suitable
processing techniques and by composite approach and hence has a wide range
of applications. They have special advantages of light weight, can withstand
very high temperatures and aggressive environments compared to metals used
mainly as coatings and sensors
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