Properties, Classification And Finishing Operations of Technical Ceramics

Ceramics in the broad definition of “inorganic solids” are one of the most important classes of materials next to metals, polymers, and composite materials. There are different types of ceramics, with technical ceramics (also known as engineering ceramics or high-performance ceramics) being the group with the highest mechanical, electrical, and/or thermal properties. Its high productivity is partly due to its extremely high purity, most of which are metal compounds combined with oxides, carbides, or nitrides. Ceramics can extend product life, increase efficiency, reduce overall maintenance costs, and increase productivity.

Technical Ceramic Material Group

Many groups of technical ceramics are available on the market today, but the basic classification defines them as highly effective components made of strong inorganic compounds. At the chemical level, they are usually held together by high-strength covalent bonds that form a strong structural lattice. The outstanding thermomechanical and chemical properties are maintained to the semi-crystalline microstructure and finally converted into solid monolithic ceramics.

technical ceramics

Multi-Lab supplies a wide range of high performance engineered ceramic materials including:

• Silicon Nitride (SiAlON): At Multi-Lab, we specialize in silicon nitride derivatives known as Sialons, outstanding universal engineering ceramics with fine-tuning
• Zirconium (ZrO2): With its incomparable durability, technical ceramics based on zirconium oxide are perfect for wear-resistant applications, from dentistry to metal forming.
• Aluminum (Al2O3): The technical ceramic of the same name, aluminum trioxide, belongs to the group of oxide ceramics and is the most used technical ceramic worldwide.
• Silicon carbide (SiC): With exceptional thermomechanical and non-corrosive features, technical ceramics based on silicon carbide are fitting for use in the chemical industry.

Read More – Applications of Technical Ceramics in Manufacturing Processes

Properties of Technical Ceramics

Chemically Inert and Corrosion Resistant

Technical ceramics are chemically very enduring and have moderate chemical solubility, which causes them extremely resistant to corrosion. Metals and polymers cannot allow the same inactivity or corrosion protection, making Macor or Machinable glass ceramics a very attractive option in several business and industrial applications, particularly when corrosion resistance is also needed.

High Hardness

One of the main general features of technical ceramics is their unusual hardness- some more than 3 times harder than stainless steel. This unusual hardness is instantly shown in its outstanding corrosion resistance, which indicates that several technical ceramics can manage their precision coatings with high endurance longer than other elements.

Excellent Wear Resistance

Many technical ceramics resist very high temperatures while preserving their construction and electrical qualities. When all elements and polymers start to decline, engineering ceramics will proceed to run with steady production and safety. These properties make ceramics suitable for use in very high-temperature applications such as ovens, jet engines, braking systems, and cutting tools.

Low density

Another common property of technical ceramics is their low density of 2 to 6 g/cm³. It is notably thinner than stainless steel (8 g/cc) and titanium (4.5 g/cc), with only the much more delicate aluminium having a comparable frequency. Due to their immense hardness and moderate density, technical ceramics are frequently being utilized in an extensive type of industries in applications where no other element can balance their production and strength.

Incredible Compressive Strength

Technical ceramics have very high strength, but these are only available under pressure. Many technical ceramics, for example, can withstand very high loads of 1000 to 4000 MPa. On the other hand, titanium, which is considered a very strong metal, only has a compressive strength of 1000 MPa.

Conductive or Thermal Insulation

Different types of technical ceramics have very different thermal properties. There are several ceramics (aluminum nitride) that have high thermal conductivity and are often used as radiators or exchangers in many electrical applications. Other ceramics are extremely less thermally conductive and are consequently suitable for a broad variety of applications.

What is Frac Sand?

Silicon Nitride – Production and Applications – Multi Lab

Silicon Nitride is a man-made nonmetallic compound that is usually in dark grey color and can be polished to create a reflective surface. The material has various industrial applications nowadays due to its improvement throughout the year. The production of silicon nitride involves well-developed methods and each method’s end result depends on the method. 1. Reaction-bonded Silicon Nitride (RBSN) The heating of compact silicon powder in a nitrogen gas atmosphere makes reaction-bonded silicon nitride. This material hardening process undergoes at 1450° called nitriding. The material has the key properties of capacity to be framed into complex shapes easily. The cost-effective porous material has various applications like nozzles. 2. Hot Pressed Silicon Nitride The hot pressing of silicon nitride makes nearly zero porosity and exceptional strength shows good resistance to thermal shock and good thermal conductivity. 3. Sintered reaction-bonded Silicon Nitride (SRBSN) SRBSN which is an upgraded version has reduced porosity. The process requires a long nitriding time at a temperature of more than 1800° and have shown improvements to impact resistance and toughness. 4. Sintered Silicon Nitride (SSN) The process occurs at the pressure less sintering at 1750° with additives such as aluminium oxide and magnesium oxide in a nitrogen atmosphere to aid densification. SSN offers the best mechanical properties. Applications of Silicon Nitride Due to its outstanding chemical-physical properties and, it has various applications in chemical, metallurgy, and machinery industries. It is used in making cutting tools and sprays pipes for missiles. As its bearing rollers can withstand high stress, silicon nitride is used in automotive engine parts. Silicon nitride has also been used in high-temperature applications. — Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/multi-lab/message

1. Silicon Nitride – Production and Applications 02:02
2. What is Frac Sand? 02:34
3. Macor M-G-C Machinable Glass Ceramic 00:21
4. Fused Silica and Quartz 00:13
5. Fused Silica – Multi Lab 00:18

Fracking is a general or slang term used for hydraulic fracturing. Hydraulic fracturing requires digging into the ground to get energy-rich natural gases from under the shale rock. Frac sand is a unique form of sand because it is much rounder, tougher and permeable. The rounded form of the sand granules enables the water and gases to move through. It limits the clogging of the hole and lets the cracks keep open while still allowing the gases to move around. This feature of the frac sand makes it unique from other materials. This material is important to ensure the pure and natural gas result in the extraction process and there will be no contaminants or foreign figures that could be hiding.

More developed sand that is almost quartz is the ideal kind of frac sand and this should be properly rounded. More fresh sand usually has a more visible or angular appearance and they often bring several minerals and rock particles. Excellent attribute frac sand is effortless to clean and separate from other elements, making it more comfortable to eliminate the particles and mud. The sand experiences various processes to eliminate any contaminants, to separate the sand by the measurement of all units and the quality of the textures. It must hold a form that is similar to brown sugar.

frac sand

Frac sand drilling is a really effective application. With the aid of sand mining, there can be more projects and it could help enhance the economy of the areas. By using high-quality sand, it is likely to satisfy the requirements for natural gas as a kind of fresh fuel and it can better support the industry.

Uses of Frac Sand

High-quality Frac Sands need to pass a crush examination because of the high volumes of force it has to endure. The quartz sand is remarkably pure and reliable. The more powerful the crush circumstance, the more reliable the sand. Also, the more powerful the cleanliness and crush factor, the more valuable the product. There are many different things that industries look for in the high standard and high crush frac sand. Take a look:

• It should be a high-quality quartz silica sand
• It needs to be the proper texture size for a hydraulic fracturing work
• It should be round in shape
• It is ready to withstand the crushing capabilities of the neighbouring shale rock.

Since the fracking industry has evolved, so demand for nearby sourced frac sand is also increasing. Hence, alternative ceramic and alloy particles have started to replace expensive, high-end sands.

Originally published on – https://anchor.fm/multi-lab/episodes/What-is-Frac-Sand-e17g0qc

Fasteners used for High Temperature Application

The fasteners are the most significant parts of the hardware group. They are extensively used to fix two physically different specifications. For most purposes, fasteners are made out of common elements like stainless steel sustain more than enough. However, other applications particularly those that require extreme temperatures, need special kinds of fasteners. Such fasteners are made of metals that show the sorts of resistance that is needed to endure severe environments. Some fasteners can beat threaded ceramics screws and bolts when it comes to resisting heat, stress, and destructive environments. The following are three categories of high-heat fasteners:

Fasteners Used for High Temperature Application from Multi-lab.co.uk

Nickel Alloy Fasteners

The term alloy relates to the material which is formed of two or more than two metals. For example, stainless steel is a metal made of iron, nickel, chromium and several other components. Different alloys hold different features with concerns to properties like melting point and corrosion stability. When fastening components in high-temperature situations is needed, alloys usually prove to be effective as they contain larger amounts of nickel. These types of alloys perform to present greater stability to oxidation, which can happen more easily at high temperatures. Oxidation relates to a chemical response that creates iron-containing elements to form rust and other applications of corrosion. Nickel alloys maintain high-temperature durability ratings more than that of simple stainless steel.

Refractory Metal Fasteners

Refractory metal fasteners are stronger than nickel alloys as nickel alloys cannot resist the extreme heat produced inside specific types of furnaces. When it comes to maintaining temperatures above 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, such refractory elements need to be used. These metals maintain melting circumstances thousands of degrees which is higher than regular metals such as steel. Refractory alloys include elements such as niobium, molybdenum, rhenium tantalum, and tungsten. The unbelievable features of such metals are available at a great value. Moreover, to allowing especially high melting points, these elements also exceed in terms of hardness and consistency.

Ceramic Fasteners

Indeed, refractory metals do not have the perfection of holding the greatest resistance to heat. That guarantee comes into the class of ceramic fasteners. These may be made of one of two elements such as alumina and zirconia. Alumina fasteners allow heat resistance of up to 3000 degrees Fahrenheit. While Zirconia fasteners can allow even higher, with temperature ranges of as much as 4350 degrees Fahrenheit. This quality makes ceramic fasteners the most reliable fasteners when it comes to high-temperature uses.      

Ceramic Prototyping with Macor

For prototyping, you will need an accuracy coil-former, a high-voltage insulator that is safe to arc, pacers, holes or mirrors in laser machines. Metal parts simply would not perform the work, as they conduct electricity, heat, and they are simply not suitable for your task. Perhaps you need hermetically sealable, exhaustion feed-through elements or coil supports, or maybe thermal breaks in high-temperature processes.

Technical plastics are fine for their temperature range and have a quick turnaround, but if you need to increase into higher temperatures, then you will need to move into technical ceramics. The main difficulty with this is time. Technical ceramics usually require a great understanding of processing. On the other hand, with regular ceramics, it can take more than two months to prepare a ceramic prototype, which involves solid machining, sintering, polishing, and several re-grinds if the reduction during sintering was not enough, or as required.

Rapid Ceramic Prototyping with Macor

If you are able to manufacture metal, you can produce Macor as well. You need to take a rod, bar, tube, slab, or block and put it in your rCNC, or whatever item you normally use, and within a day, you can have a custom ceramic prototype. If you have created a one-off prototype and it is not suitable to fit, you would still have enough time that same day to get an arrangement and prepare another prototype.

ceramics

Macor Machinable Glass Properties

Macor maintains unbelievable smoothness, concentration strength, high thermal insulating power, transmission immunity, and 40KV electrical impedance per millimetre. And unlike synthetics, whose temperature stability and rigidity begin to drop off at as little as 150°C, Macor is non-ductile and is deformation resistant to 800°C. Macor machinable glass ceramic is so thermally durable that it is divided into small pieces against which are included deformations in other elements in high temperature and radioactive conditions.

Also Read – Aluminium Silicate Machinable Ceramic

Macor Prototyping Applications

Macors’ non-wetting features make it a perfect element for managing running metal, aluminium, antimony, bismuth, cadmium, magnesium, magnesium alloy, selenium, tin, zinc, or other low-temperature hot metals. It would give wonderful rewards for oxyacetylene brazing lights, which would never accumulate metal oxides, where natural gas-cooling would keep it beneath its melting limit while allowing flames temperatures over 3400°C, where they might never become jammed.

Moreover, it was originally created for NASA’s space shuttle to prevent the thermal variation from the surface to the inside of the vehicle. It was used in the window support of the space shuttle due to its electrical and heat-insulating properties, radiation protection and non-porosity and because it releases no vapours, especially at the under pressures that were detected in spacecraft.

How Halogen Lamp Works

Halogen light bulbs work in a similar way as the standard electric bulb does, but there are important differences in the process. Usually, the electric light bulbs that you notice at your home have a glass cover that is thin and frosted. This includes an inactive gas like argon or nitrogen.

The burning filament at the centre of the lamp or bulb that people see is called tungsten. It is a tiny iron wire with a very high melting point, making it perfect to be used in bulbs as it shines at very high temperatures without melting or getting burnt. The tiny wire offers particularly high stability so when the electrical current move by the filament heat build-up and the tiny wire burns. This is all about how bulbs glow brightly. This process is named incandescence.  

The difficulty with regular electric bulbs is the low performance. Electric bulbs transform electrical force into heat and light, but regular bulbs regenerate more of the power to heat. That is why people feel hot near a glowing lamp because the heat is emitted in all areas. This radiating heat is infrared radiation, and this is unusually a waste of energy. This particular inability makes these bulbs not much effective in the long run. They burn out quickly as the tungsten wire filament vaporizes in extreme heat. This waste of tungsten creates the filament to operate thin within a short time until it all flames out, and the light bulb gets busted.

There is another type of radiant lamp, but it is more advanced and remains much more profuse than regular ones. These are named halogen light bulbs, and they are an excellent variety of bulbs. Similar to typical incandescent bulbs, they have a tungsten filament that burns and shines hot as electricity passes through them.

Also Read – Germicidal Lamps Tube

Nevertheless, unlike the electric bulb in your bathroom or garage made of a bright bulb, the tungsten wire of a halogen lamp is included in a quartz glass and this quartz ring twists in a halogen gas. The quartz surrounds the filament very closely, at which range normal glass would get opened to the intense heat of the bright filament and melt. The halogen gas that encloses the wire has features that make the tungsten wire last longer.

Halogen bulbs can also burn at extremely higher temperatures which indicates they can even be brighter than non-halogen incandescent lamps. The effectiveness and performance of halogen bulbs make them excellent for more purposes.