Oxidation ceramics

The use of acids and bases to control interiDarticle forces in oxide (ceramic)-water suspensions is an example of... 

Hafnium oxide 30—40 mol % titanium oxide ceramics (qv) exhibit a very low coefficient of thermal expansion over the temperature range of 20—1000°C. A 45—50 mol % titanium oxide ceramic can be heated to over 2800°C with no crystallographic change (48). 

Alumina, or aluminum oxide [1344-28-17, has a thermal conductivity 20 times higher than that of most oxides (5). The flexural strength of commercial high alumina ceramics is two to four times greater than those of most oxide ceramics. The drawbacks of alumina ceramics are their relatively high thermal expansion compared to the chip material (siUcon) and their moderately high dielectric constant. 

E. Ryshkewitch, Oxide Ceramics, Academic Press, Inc., New York, 1960. 

Beryllium, beryllium-containing aUoys, and beryUium oxide ceramic in soHd or massive form present no hazard whatsoever (31). SoHd shapes may be safely handled with bare hands (32) however, care must be taken in the fabrication and processing of beryUium products to avoid inhalation of airborne beryUium particulate matter such as dusts, mists, or fumes in excess of the prescribed workplace exposure limits. Inhalation of fine airborne beryUium may cause chronic beryUium disease, a serious lung disease in certain sensitive individuals. However, the vast majority of people, perhaps as many as 99%, do not react to beryUium exposure at any level (33). The biomedical and environmental aspects of beryUium have been summarized (34). 

BeryUium is used in sateUite stmctures in the form of both sheet and extmded tubing and is a very important material for aU types of space optics. BeryUium oxide ceramic apphcations take advantage of high room temperature thermal conductivity, very low electrical conductivity, and high transparency to microwaves in microelectronic substrate apphcations. 

Table 2. Properties of High Purity Beryllium Oxide Ceramics...

Y. Murata and R. H. Smoak, Proceedings of the International Symposium on Pactors in Densification Sintering of Oxide Non-Oxide Ceramics, Hakone, Japan, 1979 pp. 382-399. 

Monovalent cations are good deflocculants for clay—water sHps and produce deflocculation by a cation exchange process, eg, Na" for Ca ". Low molecular weight polymer electrolytes and polyelectrolytes such as ammonium salts (see Ammonium compounds) are also good deflocculants for polar Hquids. Acids and bases can be used to control pH, surface charge, and the interparticle forces in most oxide ceramic—water suspensions. 

Oleic acid is a good deflocculant for oxide ceramic powders in nonpolar Hquids, where a stable dispersion is created primarily by steric stabilization. Tartaric acid, benzoic acid, stearic acid, and trichloroacetic acid are also deflocculants for oxide powders in nonpolar Hquids. 

Preceramic polymer precursors (45,68) can be used to make ceramic composites from polymer ceramic mixtures that transform to the desired material when heated. Preceramic polymers have been used to produce oxide ceramics and are of considerable interest in nonoxide ceramic powder processing. Low ceramic yields and incomplete burnout currently limit the use of preceramic polymers in ceramics processing. 

Nonoxide NLO ceramics include Si and compound semiconductors (qv) having the silicon stmcture, eg, GaAs, InP, and InSb, as weU as ferroelectrics such as SbSI. These materials tend to be more highly nonlinear than oxide ceramics, although lack of transparency at visible and uv wavelengths prevents them from competing with the oxides for the same appHcations. 

There are presently four famihes of high-temperature superconductors under investigation for practical magnet appheations. Table 11-25 shows that all HTS are copper oxide ceramics even though the oxygen content may vary. However, this variation generally has little effect on the phvsical properties of importance to superconductivity. 

The poor efficiencies of coal-fired power plants in 1896 (2.6 percent on average compared with over forty percent one hundred years later) prompted W. W. Jacques to invent the high temperature (500°C to 600°C [900°F to 1100°F]) fuel cell, and then build a lOO-cell battery to produce electricity from coal combustion. The battery operated intermittently for six months, but with diminishing performance, the carbon dioxide generated and present in the air reacted with and consumed its molten potassium hydroxide electrolyte. In 1910, E. Bauer substituted molten salts (e.g., carbonates, silicates, and borates) and used molten silver as the oxygen electrode. Numerous molten salt batteiy systems have since evolved to handle peak loads in electric power plants, and for electric vehicle propulsion. Of particular note is the sodium and nickel chloride couple in a molten chloroalumi-nate salt electrolyte for electric vehicle propulsion. One special feature is the use of a semi-permeable aluminum oxide ceramic separator to prevent lithium ions from diffusing to the sodium electrode, but still allow the opposing flow of sodium ions. 

The reaction is carried out under an inert atmosphere in an open crucible at approximately 830°C. Figure 1 shows typical equipment used for direct oxide reduction. Vitrified magnesium oxide ceramic is commonly used as a container material, but tungsten and tantalum can also be used(3). If the latter are used, CaF2 is added to lower the temperature needed to liquify... 

A sodium-sulfur cell is one of the more startling batteries (Fig. 12.23). It has liquid reactants (sodium and sulfur) and a solid electrolyte (a porous aluminum oxide ceramic) it must operate at a temperature of about 320°C and it is highly dangerous in case of breakage. Because sodium has a low density, these cells have a very high specific energy. Their most common application is to power electric... 

High-performance non-oxidic ceramics I, II (M. Jansen, ed.). Struct. Bonding 101, 102 (2002). 

Non-oxide ceramics such as silicon carbide (SiC), silicon nitride (SijN ), and boron nitride (BN) offer a wide variety of unique physical properties such as high hardness and high structural stability under environmental extremes, as well as varied electronic and optical properties. These advantageous properties provide the driving force for intense research efforts directed toward developing new practical applications for these materials. These efforts occur despite the considerable expense often associated with their initial preparation and subsequent transformation into finished products. 

R. Haubner, M. Wilhelm, R. Weissenbacher, B. Lux, in High Performance Non-oxide Ceramics II, Structure and Bonding, Vol. 102, M. Jansen, ed., p. 1, Springer-Verlag, Berlin Heidelberg, 2002. 

Stober A process for making metal oxides in the form of small spheres of uniform diameter by the controlled hydrolysis of metal alkoxides. First used in 1968 to make silica spheres from alkyl silicates. The products can be used to make high quality oxide ceramics. See also Sol-Gel. 

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