SEMINAR REPORT

ON

CERAMIC MATERIALS

SUBMITTED BY

SUBMITTED TO

NAME-SUDARSAN TUDU

SCHOOL OF

BRANCH-MECHANICAL

MECHANICAL

ROLL NO-1002208

ENGINEERING

SEC-M32

KIIT UNIVERSITY

CERAMIC MATERIALS
1.INTRODUCTION
The term Ceramics is from the Greek word Keramas which means burnt
materials. In early days ceramic materials are made from burning clay
materials, which are made of inorganic silicates, metallic oxides and their
combinations. Now a days the definition of ceramics is so broadened that we
can say ceramics are any inorganic compounds made up of metals and nonmetals bonded by strong attractive forces such as ionic or covalent bonds and
are produced by burning at elevated temperatures. These ceramic materials have
high wear resistance and can withstand high temperatures. Engineering
ceramics are oxides, nitrides, carbides, borides, silicates, of some specific
metals such as aluminium, titanium, zirconium etc. Ceramic materials include
sand, glass, refractories, abrasives, clay products, cement, insulators,
engineering synthetic ceramics etc.
Ceramics are generally compounds of metallic or non-metallic elements
and other non-metals such as oxygen, nitrogen, carbon and boron
Ceramic comes from the Greek word Keramas
Greek-

meaning

Pottery
Sanskrit-Burnt Earth
Early

Ceramics

from fire pits

2. CLASSIFICATION OF CERAMICS

come

2.1Classification of Ceramic Materials: Ceramic materials are classsified as

follows:
2.1.1Functional Classification:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.
vii.
viii.

Abrassive: Alumina, carborundum

Pure oxide ceramic: MgO, Al2O3, SiO2
Fire-clay products: Bricks, Tiles, Porcelain etc.
Inorganic glass: Window glass, lead glass etc.
Cementing Materials: Portland cement, Lime etc.
Fig. Fire -clay
Rocks: Granite, Sandstone etc.
products
Minerals: Quartz, calcite etc.
Refractories: Silica bricks, Magnesite etc.

2.1.2 Structural Classification:

i.

Crystalline ceramics: Single-phase MgO or multi-phase from the MgO to

ii.
iii.
iv.

Al2O3 binary system.

Non-crystalline ceramics: Natural & synthetic glasses
Glass-bonded ceramics: Fire-clay products
Cements : crystalline or crystalline & non-crystalline phases

2.2 Classification of Ceramic Products:

A general classification of ceramic products is difficult to make because
of the great versatility of these materials , but the following list includes the
major groups:
1. Whitewares
2. Bricks & Tiles
3. Chemical stonewares
4. Cements & concretes
5. Abrasives
6. Glass
7. Insulators
8. Porcelain enamel
9. Refractories
10.Electrical porcelain
11.Mineral ores
12.Slags & fluxes

3. ADVANTAGES OF CERAMIC MATERIALS

The ceramic materials have the following advantages:
1. The ceramics are hard, strong & dense
2. They have high resistance to the action of chemicals & to the weathering.
3. Possess a high compression strength compared with tension.
4. They have fusion points
5. They offer excellent dielectric properties.
6. They are good thermal insulators.
7. They are resistant to high temperature creep.
8. Availability is good.
9. Good sanitation.
10.Better economy.
4. PROPERTIES OF CERAMIC MATERILAS
4.1 Mechanical properties:
(a) Hardness & resistant wear: The special property of ceramics having wear
resistance & hardness make them usable as abrasive in grinding wheel &
cutting machines. Some of the very hard synthetic ceramic abrasives are
SiC, BN, Al2O3 etc.
(b) Compressive Strength: Ceramics materials are having a high compressive
strength. For example Al2O3 is having a compressive strength 3500kg/cm2
(c) Impact strength: Certain ceramic materials have considerable impact
strength .For example stone ware have impact strength 1.1-1.3
N/m2.Vetrified ware have impact strength 0.7-1.2 N/m2
(d) Modulus of elasticity: The modulus of elasticity of ceramic materials can
be varied to a wide range from 7X1010 N/m2 to 40X1010N/m2.
4.2 Electrical properties:
The ceramic materials find great application as insulators, semiconductors, thermisters, thermo electric device, transistors, piezoelectric
transducers & storage cells in memory system because of their special
electric properties.
(a) Electric insulation: Porcelain, steatite & aluminium are some of the very
good insulating materials.

(b) Semi-conduction: Although most of the ceramics are insulators, some

special ceramic materials are used as semi-conductors,

N.T.C resisters: cobalt oxide, iron oxide or Nickel oxide ceramics

P.T.C resisters: It is based on the barium titanate.

(c) Dielectric constant: Ceramic materials have dielectric constant e

value upto 100 under special conditions. The common ceramic materials
porcelain, quartz, mica & alumina have dielectric constants up to 12
under normal conditions.
(d) Dielectric Strength: It is the electrical breakdown potential of a insulator
per unit thickness. Alumina, porcelain, fused silica glass etc. Possess high
dielectric strength & can be used as good insulating materials for high
voltage current.
(e) Piezo electricity: Certain ceramic materials such as barium titanate &
lead zirconate, titanate can be made piezo electric by a suitable treatment
at high voltage which is otherwise known as polarization. These materials
have the property of transforming mechanical deformation in to voltage
change & vice versa. Gramophone pickups, vibration pickups etc. are
made of these materials.
4.3 Chemical Properties:
Generally ceramics are hard materials & the hardness is mainly due to
the very compact packing of atoms by ionic or covalent bonds. Due to
the hardness ceramics have a brittle nature. Most of the ceramics are
crystalline in nature. Most of the ceramic materials are highly resistant to
most of the chemicals except hydrofluoric (HF) acid. Organic solvents
do not affect ceramics also. Oxide ceramics are completely resistant to
oxidation even at elevated temperatures. Magnesia, Zirconia, Porcelain,
Aluminium, are highly chemically inert & employed for Crucibles &
furnace linings. Glazed porcelain are especially highly chemically inert.
4.4Thermal Properties:

Most ceramic materials are thermally stable upto a temperature of

10000C. The softening point of chromite is 12500C-14500C & that of
silica is 16500C-17000C. The permissible operating condition of chromite
is 13000C-14500C & silica is 17000C.
4.5 Optical properties:
Ceramics, mainly metallic silicates are found to have great application in
the form of glass. There are different varieties of glasses depending on
the nature of the metallic content of the silicates.
4.6 Magnetic property:
Ferrites consisting of iron oxides with other ceramic oxides are used as
magnetic ceramics. The soft magnetic ceramic materials are made of
ferrox cube & the hard magnetic ceramic materials are made of ferrox
dure. Due to their high electrical resistivity, they found application in
electronic industries.
5. APPLICATION OF CERAMICS
The application of ceramics are listed below:
The whitewares (old ceramics) are largely used as/in:
Tiles;

Sanitary wares;
Low and high voltage insulators;
High frequency application;
Fig. Tile, cup.
Chemical industry-as crucibles, jars,& component of chemical

reactor;
Heat resistant application-as pyrometers, burners, burnertips,
radiant heater support;
6. MODERN ENGINEERING CERAMICS:
Modern ceramics include metal Oxides, Carbides, Borides, Nitrides &
Silicates. Some of their examples are magnesia (MgO), Alumina (Al 2O3),

Zirconia (ZrO2), Beryllia (BeO), Silicon carbide (SiC) and Tungsten carbide
(TiC).
The advantages of modern engineering ceramics are as follows:
(i) Most of the ceramic possess high hardness.This increased hardness
is due to the operation of strong covalent bonds between atoms in
their crystal structure. Materials like silicon carbide & boron
nitride are the examples of ceramics with high harness. It is this
property which makes them useful as abrasive powder and cutting
tools.
(ii)Ceramics have high melting points. Materials such as magnesia &
alumina have melting points of 2800 0C & 20400C respectively.
This property makes them excellent refractory materials for the
lining of furnaces.
(iii) Ceramics are good thermal insulators. In most of the ceramis,
there are no free conducting electrons & heat is conducted only by
transfer of vibration energy from one atom to another. This is unlike
free electrons in metals. Hence, ceramics possess excellent
insulating property. This is another reason to use them as refractory
materials.
(iv) Ceramics have extremely high electrical resistivity. Hence, they are
used for electrical insulators. Porcelain is a popular insulating
material. Alumina is used for spark-plug insulation.
(v) The densities of ceramics are low compared with those of
engineering metals. This results in lightweight components.
Ceramics have certain drawbacks. Their main disadvantages are as follows:
(i) Ceramics are brittle in nature. They are highly susceptible to stress
concentration. Presence of micro-crack may lead to failure because it
acts as a stress raiser. In ceramics, there is no plastic deformation like

metals & no redistribution of stresses. This results in brittle fracture like

cast iron components.
(ii) In ceramics, ductility is almost zero. This is mainly due to the presence
of small voids in the structure of ceramic parts.
(iii)
The ceramics have poor tensile strength.

Fig. Stress Strain diagram of ceramic

Fig. Stress Srain Diagram of metals

(iv)

There is a wide variation in strength values of ceramics. Even in

identical specimens, the properties vary due to variation of internal

pores. Hence, in design of ceramic components statistical approach is

essential for calculating the values of strength.
(v) Ceramics are difficult to shape & machine.
7. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CERAMICS & METALS:
CERAMICS

METALS

No free conducting electron.

High electrical & thermal
conductivity.
No ability to be deformed or

Free conducting electron are

there.
Low electrical

&

thermal

cut in to new shapes without

conductivity.
ability to be deformed or cut in

breaking.
Have corrosion resistance to

to new shapes.
Have no corrosion resistance to

chemicals.
High
melting

chemicals.
Low melting

Magnesia-28000C,

point

i.e

Alumina-

20400C.
Brittle in nature.
Difficult to design.
Difficult to shape & machine
To shape a ceramic, a mixture
of ceramic powder, water &

point

than

ceramics.
Ductile in nature.
Easy to design .
Easy to shape & machine.
To shape a metal, metal is
molded,

forging,

machining

etc.

binder material is molded in to

desired dimension with heat.
8. CHALENGES OF CERAMICS:
Low fracture toughness/Damage tolerance
Highly brittle
This leads to the development of Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMCs)

8.1Ceramic Matrix Composite- Ceramic composites are materials in which

one or more ceramic materials are deliberately added to another, in order to
enhance or provide some property not possessed by the original materials.
9. APPLICATION OF ENGINEERING CERAMICS:
1. A number of parts made of automobile engines are now a days made of
ceramics. They include Cylinder liners, Piston, Spar-plug Piston valves
& engine blocks .

Fig. Ceramic piston

Fig. Ceramic Engine Block

The principal advantage of ceramics engine components over conventional

metal parts are as follows:
Ability to withstand higher operating temperature ;
Excellent wear & corrosion resistance
Lower frictional loss;
Ability to operate without cooling system;
Light weight construction with low inertia force;
Advanced Ceramic Materials
Ceramatec has deep experience in working with a wide variety of materials
including but not limited to oxides, borides, nitrides, pervoskites, and ionically
conducting ceramics. We often make our own complex ceramic compositions &
formulations that then are used in several of the applications listed below. Each

unique formulation has its own processing nuances and over the years we have
been very successful in scaling up these complex compositions to larger
volumes.

2. Biomass to Biofuels:
We have developed a porous ceramic for use as a catalyst support and for
selective hydrogen enrichment both of which can improve the process
efficiencies in a biomass to biofuel conversion process.
3. Biodiesel
Our patented sodium-selective ceramic membranes allows our customers
to produce sodium methylate (SMO) a critical catalyst used in biodiesel
process on site at a cheaper cost than conventional options.
4. Biomedical & Orthopedics
Using our expertise in fabricating intricate multi-channels and multifunctional ceramic structures, Ceramatec has designed orthopedic
implants that are porous but can take substantial loads compared to
conventional porous ceramic implants. The multifunctional features has
lead to the design of drug eluting implants, anti-microbial spacers for
knees and joints, partially bio-resorbable implants, and bioceramics beads
for spinal applications.
5. Carbon Dioxide (CO2) Processing
By using our in-house technologies like the plasma reformer , SOEC ,
and compact fischer-tropsch process, we can produce convert undesirable
carbon dioxide into useful gases like syngas which can then be converted
to a liquid fuel.
6. Coatings
Our coatings technology for metals & ceramics is being evaluated in
turbines for aircrafts. Other novel coating materials are also being
developed which have anti-fungal properties , or offer greater fireresistance to wood-based building products . A third set of coatings have
been developed for refractory, bricks, ladles, and furnace linings

7. Custom Electrode Development

Ceramatec has significant expertise in custom electrode development for
a wide variety of electrochemical reactions which are critical in industrial
processes.
8. Disinfection
By using our proprietary membranes we are able to produce sodium
hypochlorite which is several times stronger disinfectant. The potential
applications can be in hospitals, military, and food industry.
9. (Clean) Electricity Production
We have an ongoing program in fuel cells (low temperature SOFCs) to
demonstrate clean electricity production.
10.Energy Storage
Ceramatec is working on both sodium and lithium based batteries . These
batteries are expected to allow energy storage for homes and have better
energy density than existing solutions.
11.Gas Production
Ceramatec has been working on large industrial scale gases like Oxygen ,
Nitrogen, Hydrogen, and Syngas . A wide range of technological
approaches have been evaluated and successfully demonstrated. We have
different ways to produce hydrogen either electrochemically or by
selective separation/enrichment using either dense ceramic membranes or
via (catalyst-loaded) porous ceramic membranes .
12.Heat Exchangers & Gear Drives
Ceramic heat exchangers can offer significant advantages in processes
which require high temperatures (>500C) and harsh environments (like
hot sulfuric acid).
13.Air-bubble detectors (ABD) with Ultrasonic Piezo transducers from
PI Ceramic
In medical device engineering it is often necessary to ensure an
undisturbed liquid flow with no air or gas pockets.
Permanent monitoring of the flow is particularly essential for dialysis,
transfusion pumps or heart-lung machines.

This is achieved with the aid of ultrasonic technology in so-called bubble

or air-bubble detectors (ABD).
Piezoelectric transducers from PI Ceramic are the key elements for this
technology.
They transmit and receive the ultrasonic waves, similar to the sonar used
in submarines. The sensors are mounted on the outside of flexible tubes
and operate under sterile conditions without coming into contact with the
medium to be transported; they do not interfere with the flow rate, nor is
there any danger of contamination. The bubble detector detects air
bubbles in flexible plastic tubes filled with liquid, regardless of the color
or opacity of the medium.
14.

15. Piezoceramic Actuators

16. Blades of Gas turbine

17.

18.

19.

20.

21.

22.

23.

24.

25.

12.Heat Exchangers & Gear Drives

CONCLUSION

Advance ceramics are going to be implemented in various engineering field

due to its hardness, good corrosion resistance & high melting point. It is being
used in Biomedicals & Orthopedics, Carbondioxide (CO 2) Processing, Coating,
Heat Exchanger & Gear drives, Aerospace, Actuators, Turbine blades, Jet
engine Igniters, Missile Radomes, Aircraft Engine parts, ball bearings,
Semiconductors etc. Though these have high melting point & high hardness but
these have not particular failure point varying widely in range. So design of
ceramic materials are so difficult to use in desired purpose. Research is going
on ceramics. Very soon a number of products will be available at market.

REFERENCES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.

MATERIAL SCIENCE BY R.K RAJPUT

DESIGN OF MACHINE ELEMENT BY V. BHANDARI
GOOGLE TECH TALKS

http://www.ceramatec.com/
http://www.piceramic.com/
http://www.google.com/
http://piceramic.de/
http://www.formatec.nl/
http://www.seminarstopics.com