CERAMICS

What are Ceramic

Materials?
➢ Made from clay or clay like plastic materials and after
shaping and drying subjected to high temperature

➢ Inorganic, nonmetallic materials that consist of metallic and

nonmetallic elements

➢ bonded together primarily by ionic and/ or covalent bonds

➢ Its chemical compositions vary considerably

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➢ Typically hard and brittle with low toughness and ductility
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absorbs
breaking
➢ Usually good electrical and thermal insulators
➢ Normally have relatively high melting temperatures and high
chemical stability in many hostile environments
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➢ Bending resistance
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➢ High hardness
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➢ High degree resistance to moisture

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➢ Resistance to impact and abrasion

➢ Excellent resistance to chemical attack
➢ Temperature resistance up to 2400 °C
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➢ Can be design to various type of pattern
➢ Can be painted to various type of colors
➢ Roofing tiles contains more than 30% water which have
considerable drying contraction
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Wall and floor tiles contain 2-5% water have greater
accuracy in shape and size
➢ Most advanced ceramic materials are combination of
ceramics and others materials known as Ceramic Matrix
Composites
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 Metals vs Ceramics
Metals Ceramics
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(KAlSi3O8 – NaAlSi3O8 –
CaAl2Si2O8)
 Whitewares
Made from components of clay, silica, and feldspar for which
the composition is controlled.
• Crockery
• Floor and wall tiles
• Sanitary-ware
• Electrical porcelain
• Decorative ceramics

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 Abrasive is a material, often a mineral, that is used to shape or
finish a workpiece through rubbing which leads to part of the
workpiece being worn away
a material often means polishing it to gain a smooth, reflective
surface which can also involve roughening as in satin, matte or
beaded finishes

• Natural (garnet, diamond, etc.)

• Synthetic abrasives (silicon carbide, diamond, fused alumina, etc.)
are used for grinding, cutting, polishing, lapping, or pressure
blasting of materials

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 Refractories -

• Refractory is one that retains its strength at high temperature

Example includes kiln linings, gas fire radiants, steel, glass making
crucibles

• Used to provide thermal protection of other materials in very high

temperature applications, such as steel making (Tm=1500°C), metal
foundry operations, etc.
• They are usually composed of alumina (Tm=2050°C) and silica along
with other oxides: MgO (Tm=2850°C), Fe2O3, TiO2, etc., and have
intrinsic porosity typically greater than 10% by volume.
• Specialized refractories, and BeO, ZrO2, mullite, SiC and graphite with
low porosity are also used.

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Refractories
Cement
• Generic name for powdered materials which initially have
plastic flow when mixed with water or other liquid but form
a solid structure in several hours with varying degree of
strength. CasiOz CazSiO4

• Portland cement is defined as finely ground calcium silicates

and aluminates of varying composition which hydrate when
mixed with water to form a rigid structure with compressive
strength.

Code Formula
C2S 2CaO.SiO2
C3S 3CaO.SiO2
C3A 3CaO.Al2O3
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C4AF 4CaO. Al2O3.Fe2O3
Used in construction can be characterized as being either hydraulic or non-
hydraulic

●Hydraulic Cement is a product used to stop water and leaks in concrete and
masonry structures. It is a type of cement, similar to mortar, that sets
extremely fast and hardens after it has been mixed with water. t

●The carbonation reaction requires the dry cement to be exposed to air, and
for this reason the slaked lime, a non-hydraulic cement, cannot be used under
water. This whole process is called the lime cycle.

The most important uses of cement are as an ingredient in the production of

mortar in masonry, and of concrete, a combination of cement and an aggregate
to form a strong building material
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Advanced Ceramics

• Advanced ceramic materials have been developed over the

past half century
• Applied as thermal barrier coatings to protect metal structures,
wearing surfaces, or as integral components by themselves.
• Engine applications are very common for this class of material
which includes silicon nitride (Si3N4), silicon carbide (SiC),
Zirconia (ZrO2) and Alumina (Al2O3)
• Heat resistance and other desirable properties have lead to the
development of methods to toughen the material by
reinforcement with fibers and whiskers opening up more
applications for ceramics

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Advanced Ceramics
• Structural: Wear parts, bioceramics, cutting tools,
engine components, armour.
• Electrical: Capacitors, insulators, integrated circuit
packages, piezoelectrics, magnets and
superconductors
• Coatings: Engine components, cutting tools, and
industrial wear parts
• Chemical and environmental: Filters, membranes,
catalysts, and catalyst supports

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Ceramic materials that demonstrate enhanced mechanical
properties under demanding conditions.

Because they serve as structural members, often being subjected to

mechanical loading, they are given the name structural ceramics.

Ordinarily, for structural applications ceramics tend to be expensive

replacements for other materials, such as metals, polymers, and
composites.

Classified to:
o Nuclear Ceramics
o Bioceramics
o Tribological Ceramics
o Automotive Ceramics
Nuclear ceramics, ceramic materials employed in the generation of
nuclear power and in the disposal of radioactive nuclear wastes.

In their nuclear-related functions, ceramics are of major

importance. Since the beginning of nuclear power generation,
oxide ceramics, based on the fissionable metals uranium and
plutonium, have been made into highly reliable fuel pellets for both
water-cooled and liquid-metal-cooled reactors.

Ceramics also can be employed to immobilize and store nuclear

wastes. Although vitrification (glass formation) is a favoured
approach for waste disposal, wastes can be processed with other
ceramics into a synthetic rock, or synroc, or they can be mixed
with cement powder to make hardened cements.

All these nuclear applications are extremely demanding. In

addition to severe thermal and chemical driving forces, nuclear
ceramics are continuously subjected to high radiation doses.
● Ceramic products or components employed in medical and dental
applications, mainly as implants and replacements.

● Bioceramics range in biocompatibility from the ceramic oxides,

which are inert in the body, to the other extreme of restorable
materials, which are eventually replaced by the materials which they
were used to repair.

● Bioceramic materials are commonly subdivided by their bioactivity.

Bioinert materials, (such as Oxide ceramics, Silica ceramics, Carbon
fiber) are non-toxic and noninflammatory.

● These materials must be long lasting, structural failure resistant, and

corrosion resistant.
● Bioceramics additionally must have a low Young‘s modulus to help prevent
cracking of the material. Ceramics are now commonly used in the medical
fields as dental, and bone implants. Joint replacements are commonly coated
with bioceramic materials to reduce wear and inflammatory response. Other
examples of medical uses for bioceramics are in pacemakers, kidney dialysis
machines, and respirators.
Tribological ceramics, also called wear-resistant ceramics, ceramic materials
that are resistant to friction and wear. They are employed in a variety of
industrial and domestic applications, including mineral processing and
metallurgy.

They are being used today in diverse applications such as tips for ball-point
pens, precision instrument bearings, and cutting tool inserts.

Tribological applications of ceramics can be divided into several categories

based on the properties of the ceramics. These include: resistance to
abrasion and erosion; resistance to corrosive wear; wear resistance at
elevated temperatures; and electrical, thermal and magnetic properties.
The most widely used tribological ceramic is coarse
grained alumina (aluminum oxide, Al2O3), which owes its popularity to its low
manufacturing costs.

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Ceramic-matrix composites represent an improvement over alumina in that
large primary grains (e.g., silicon carbide [SiC]), which are not easily
loosened, are combined with a more compliant matrix (e.g., silica [Si], silicon
nitride [Si3N4], or glass), which resists microcracking. Ceramics toughened
with whiskers, fibres, or transforming phases represent an even greater
improvement.
 Raw Materials
Ceramics are in general made up of 3 basic raw materials

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(a) Clay
(b) Sand and
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(c) Feldspar
Few examples of commonly used fluxing agents are

Borax (Na2B4O7), Cryolite (Na3AlF6), Pearl Ash (K2CO3),

Soda Ash (Na2CO3)

Few examples of commonly used refractory ingredients are

Dolomite (Ca/MgCO3), Alumina (Al2O3), Titania (TiO2),

Zirconia (ZrO2)
 Raw Materials
Clay
● Principal raw material.
● Can be given any desired shape and on drying at 100 °C, it
becomes hard and brittle due to removal of free water.
● This dried hard and brittle materials soak water again and become
soft and plastic.
● When heated to about 400 to 700 °C, they lose the combined
water and produce hard porous products which do not soften with
water again.
● When heated to about 900 to 1000 °C hardness and porosity of
the materials increase.
● At 1400 °C and above, the products melt and produce glassy non-
porous materials
● essentially consists of alumina and silicates
● Conversion of rock to clay
K2O.Al2O3.6SiO2 + CO2 + 2H2O → K2CO3 + Al2O3.2SiO2. 2H2O +
4SiO2
 Sand
● Occurs most abundantly in the earth crust as pure mineral (SiO2).
● Provides mechanical strength to the ceramic materials.

Feldspar
● Also abundantly available in the earth crust.
● Main constituent of igneous rocks.
● Not occurred in pure state in nature.
● Always associated with quartz, clays, mica etc.
● Used as flux and glossy materials which help in bonding and
cementing the ingredients together.
● Most commonly used feldspar in ceramic industry are:

i. Potash Feldspar ( K2O.Al2O3.6SiO2 )

ii. Sodium Feldspar ( Na2O.Al2O3.6SiO2 )
iii. Lime Feldspar (CaO.Al2O3. 2SiO2 )
 Manufacturing
(i) GrindingT heating
temp
high
● Calcination is used as a pre-crushing step to make the flint more
brittle and easily crushable
● Mechanical crushing machines such as stone crusher, jaw crusher
are used for breaking up large pieces of hard materials
● Ball and pebble mills are used for grinding materials into
thorough and uniform size.
(ii) Mixing
In this step the ground raw materials are mixed in a definite
proportion to make the clay mixture of right consistency for a
particular shaping process and also to bring the desired properties on
the fired body.

Mixing in semi-solid state

In this step the clay and other ingredients are manipulated to a plastic
state of soft solid mass suitable for shaping process . If the clay
mixture has the right consistency, it can be placed directly to the
mixture machine in the required proportion. If the clay is to dry,
limited amount of water is to be added and mixed thoroughly with the
clay. These process is called tempering.

Mixing in dry state

In this method the clay is mixed with other ingredients in a dry state
and then necessary amount of water is added.
Mixing of ingredients in dry state has some advantages over
mixing in plastic state. Plastic clay is sticky and it may adhere
with the mixture blades at the same time individual clay
particles may also adhere together.
The drying of the clay materials maybe carried out in various
types of clay driers. The most commonly used driers are
Rotatory drier and Tunnel drier.

Rotatory drier consist of a long slightly inclined rotating tube in

which clay materials are failed at the upper end of the tube and
hot air is blown up from the lower end as the clay materials
move slowly from top to the bottom they meet hot air flowing
counter currently.
In the Tunnel drier the clay materials are placed in trays on rack
cars and then allowed to pass through the tunnel slowly from
cold end to hot end.
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 Mixing in liquid state
①
In this method the clay is first mixed with large amount of water to
form a G slip. Then mixed with dry or wet pulverized non-plastic
material and then water is removed in a filter press in order to obtain
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dough like mass.

(iii) Filtering
In this step the liquid part of the mixture is filtered out by using filter
Ypress. Filter press consist of a number of iron plates and frames
grooved from inside so that when they are tightened they form a
number of chambers. The two ends of each chamber are covered by
filter clothes. The clothes are being pressed between the plates and
frames.
The slip containing water is pumped inside each chamber and the pressure is gradually
increased. When pressure in each chamber become sufficiently high the water of the
slip is forced to come out through the cloth. The solid part of the slip is retained and
fills the individual chamber. The resulting dough like material is called filter cake
 (iv) Shaping
a) Soft mud process
• Oldest method of giving shape of clay products
• Shaping is done on spinning clay by the thumb, fingers and
palms of the skilled potter.
b) Stiff mud process
• Stiff mud containing 12-20% water is forced to pass thorough a
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steel die
• The column thus obtained is cut into desired length.
• Used in manufacturing bricks, electrical insulators etc.
c) Slip Casting
• A die (usually made of plaster of paris) desired shape is used
which has very high soaking capacity
• Suspension of the ceramic material having concentration 30-
40% is prepared, poured into the die
• The die sucks the water and as a result hard layer of clay is
formed on the mould surface
(v) Drying
• Need careful drying before firing otherwise cracks may occur
• Rate of drying depends on surface area, temperature and rate
of air circulation
(v) Firing
• Dried ceramic wares are fired at different temperature ranging
from 700-2000 °C to impart hardness, durability and strength
• C
Unglazed wares fired only once, glazed wares fired two times
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glazed decorative wares fired three times
• For glazed wares after firing at 800-900 °C it is dipped into
slip prepared by mixing finely powdered quartz, feldspar,
borax and lead oxide with water to form a slurry
• Third time firing is used for decorative ceramic. Colored
design is put in the form of sticker or by painting at relatively
low temperature 500-600 °C
The first effect of heat is to drive of the water of hydration. This
occurs at about 600-650 °C and absorbs much heat living an
amorphous mixture of alumina and silica as shown below-

Al2O3.2SiO2.2H2O → Al2O3 + 2SiO2 + 2H2O

As heating continues, the amorphous form of alumina changes
quite shortly at 940 °C to a crystalline form of alumina
At a slightly higher temperature (about 1000 °C) the alumina
and silica combine to form mullite.
At further higher temperatures the remaining silica is converted
into crystalline cristobalite.

3Al2O3.2SiO2.2H2O → 3Al2O3.2SiO2 + 4SiO2 + 6H2O

kaolinite Mullite cristobalite
(v) Glazing
• Exterior coating of low melting glass that melts onto the
surface of the first fired article (biscuit)
• Though the main function of glazing is to block the pores,
however, it has multiple functions-

• Produce aesthetic appeal

• Improve appearance
• Increase durability
• Provide fine, smooth and glossy surface
• Protect from harsh environmental conditions
• Make surface impervious to liquid
(v) Glazing
• Exterior coating of low melting glass that melts onto the
surface of the first fired article (biscuit)
• Though the main function of glazing is to block the pores,
however, it has multiple functions-

• Produce aesthetic appeal

• Improve appearance
• Increase durability
• Provide fine, smooth and glossy surface
• Protect from harsh environmental conditions
• Make surface impervious to liquid