Fabrication porous bodies

Infiltration (67) provides a unique means of fabricating ceramic composites. A ceramic compact is partially sintered to produce a porous body that is subsequently infiltrated with a low viscosity ceramic precursor solution. Advanced ceramic matrix composites such as alumina dispersed in zirconia [1314-23-4] Zr02, can be fabricated using this technique. Complete infiltration produces a homogeneous composite partial infiltration produces a surface modified ceramic composite. 

Because of their strong chemical bonds, bulk ceramics are most efficiently fabricated by means of densification of powders. The fabrication process involves two main stages (1) consolidation of the powder to form a porous, shaped article (the green body), also referred to as forming, and (2) heating of the shaped powder form to produce a dense article, referred to as firing or sintering. The final product commonly consists of a relatively dense polycrystal with some residual porosity (Fig. 1). The microstructure, which... 

Other control parameters included both chemical reactions and physical interactions (Figure 9). Variation of these properties caused a concomitant change in mechanical properties and water absorption. Such control eillows the composite to be "tailored to a specific use. This material can be easily fabricated and adapted to a number of different socket geometries while allowing bone growth into the porous material. Initial studies have shown that neither the biocompatibility of the material nor the resistance to body fluid diffusion are affected to a major extent by this crosslinking method. Long term implantation studies are presently underway to determine the ultimate effect of the material on the implant area. 

The main property of the outer shell is to provide a protection against the outside weather conditions, mainly rain, snow and wind. In order to avoid excessive sweat accumulation, the outer layer should allow moisture transfer from the body to the environment. Such waterproof, windproof and breathable fabrics (WBF—mainly membranes and coatings) have been on the market for more than 30 years. The waterproof properties and, at the same time, the water vapour transfer are either achieved with a micro-porous or a hydrophilic structure, or a combination of both technologies (bi-component WBF). Waterproofness and breathability are contradictory requirements and, therefore, a compromise has to be found between protection and comfort properties. This compromise is usually achieved by adapting the porosity and thickness of such WBF layers. 

Pressure sintering techniques have also been used to fabricate transparent lanthanum-doped lead zirconate titanate (PLZT) ceramics in air and in oxygen-gas atmosphere [31]. The microstructure of the sintered body was not uniform it was completely dense near the surface, but it was porous at the center. The thickness of the dense layer increased with sintering time and oxygen-gas pressure in the sintering atmosphere. Vaporization of PbO from the specimen surface and resultant formation of lattice vacancies were attributed to this microstructural evolution. Diffusion of the gas trapped in the pores was also important in determining the thickness of the dense layer. When the PLZT specimen was sintered in air at 1200 °C for 8 h, the thickness of the dense layer was 0.25 mm. Therefore, if the specimen thickness was 0.5 mm, the whole specimen was dense and transparent. When the specimen was sintered in an oxygen-gas atmosphere under the same conditions, the specimen thickness increased markedly. 

A fabric sample measuring 300 x300mm is mounted on a square porous plate which is heated to a constant temperature that approximates body skin temperature (e.g. 35 °C).The plate temperature is measured by the sensor sandwiched directly underneath the plate surface. The whole apparatus is housed in a chamber so that the environmental conditions can be carefully controlled. Air speed above the specimen is regulated at 1 m/s. After steady state conditions are reached, the total evaporative resistance of the fabric is calculated by the following ... 

Cake filtration this is undoubtedly the most widely encountered mechanism in industrial filtration and involves the accnmulation of particles that bridge together in a porous structure on the surface of the fabric. It follows from this that, once formed, the cake effectively becomes the filter medium, with the fabric thereafter acting simply as a support. In cases where it is difficult for the particles to form a naturally porous cake, the use of a special precoat or body feed may be employed to assist in this task. 

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