Glass Properties:

 Upon cooling, a glass continues

to be more viscous with
decreasing temperature
 no definite temperature at
which the liquid transforms to a
solid
 volume decreases continuously
with temperature reduction
 TgThe temperature at which
the transition in the amorphous Crystal  discountinue decrease
regions between the glassy and in vol at Tm
rubbery state Tg: glass transition T
 Slight decrease in slope of
Tm: melting T for crystalline
curve
 Heat RM to an elevated temperature above which melting
occurs
 Most commercial glasses are of the silica–soda–lime variety
 silica (quartz)–Na2O(soda ash, Na2CO3)–CaO(limestone,
CaCO3)
 Important: homogeneous and pore free
 Homogeneity  complete melting and mixing of RM
 Porosity results from small gas bubbles that are produced 
these must be absorbed into the melt or otherwise eliminated,
which requires proper adjustment of the viscosity of the molten
material
 4 methods to fabricate glass: pressing, blowing, drawing & fiber
forming
  relatively thick-walled pieces (plates and dishes.
 The glass piece is pressed in a graphite-coated
cast iron mold with desired shape
 the mold is heated to ensure an even surface.
 some glass blowing is
done by hand  art
object
 RM press in mold
parison (temporary
shape); place into
finishing or blow mold &
forced to conform to the
mold contours by the
pressure created from a
blast of air
 Glass bottle, jar, light bulb
 Form long glass pieces (sheet, tubing, rod etc)
 hot rolling may applied
 Flatness & surface finish may be improved by floating the
sheet on a bath of molten tin at high T followed slowly
cooled and subsequently heat treated
 Clay are aluminosilicates Al2O3 & SiO3 contain
chemically bound water
 Broad in physical characteristic, chemical
composition, structure
 Impurities: oxide of Ba, Ca, Na, K, Fe
 May contain nonplastic ingredient
 Nonclay minerals: flint, quartz, feldspar
 Quartzrelatively hard, little change in high T,
ability to form glass
  contain mineral
 Clay minerals play 2 roles:
1.When added water, form hydroplasticity
2.Fuse or melt over a range T dense &
strong ceramic during firing without
complete melting; desired shape
 Common clay mineral: kaolinite
(Al2(Si2O5)(OH)4
 Most prevailing structure  layer
structure
 When water is added, the water
molecules fit in between these layered
sheets and form a thin film around the
clay particles.
 RM  milling & grinding  screening &
sizing  mixing all RM  shaping
 Binder  a component that is added to hold the powder
together while shaping the body
 2 functions of binder: 1) provide plasticity necessary for
forming & 2) provides the dry (green) shape with strength
sufficient to survive the handling process between shaping
and sintering
 requirements for the binder is able to be eliminated from the
compact during the firing process without any disruptive
effect  water, polymers
 Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA  high green strength) and poly
(ethylene glycol) (PEGhigh green density) are the two of
the most popular binders for dry pressing ceramics
 Plasticizer is the component of a binder that keeps it soft or
pliable; it improves the rheological properties
 Mixing ceramic powder with large vol of liquid to produce a
mass that deformable/plastic under P
 The binder: water, organic liquid, complex comp to achieve
required viscosity & properties

NOTE
 Slurry  a suspension of ceramic particles in a liquid
 Green state ceramic compact that is strong enough to be
handled and machined but is not fully dense and the bonds
between the grains are not strong.
  represents a transition state between the loose powder
and the high-density sintered product ; ceramic before fired
 slip consists of fine (<10 µm) cceramic powder particles that
are suspended in a fluid usually water.
 a solid content up to ~60 vol%.
 Deflocculents are added to the slip to modify the electrical
properties of each particle (the particles repel each other)
 deflocculation  process by which floccules present in a
liquid break up into fine particles producing a dispersion
 Defloculation >< coagulation
 a deflocculant an additive that causes this process.
3 methods in ceramic shaping:
 Powder compaction: dry pressing, hot pressing, cold
isostatic pressing, etc
 casting: using a mold with the ceramic as or containing of
liquid or slurry
 Plastic forming: using pressure to shape the green ceramic;

extrusion, injection molding etc.

 Pressing of free flowing powder
 Pressure application depends on final product
 2 types: dry pressed (i.e. without addition of binder) & pressed
with the addition of suitable binder
 uniaxially  simple shape, or isostaticcally  complex shape
 three basic steps: filling the die, compacting the contents,
and ejecting the pressed solid
 A particle size 20 and 200 µm; a high volume fraction of small
particles s problems with flow and sticking of the punches.
 During pressing the powder particles must flow between the
punches uniformly filled.
 In a double-action press  top and bottom punches are
movable.
 bottom punch is in the low position a cavity the cavity is
filled with free flowing powder ; the powder is struck off level
with the top of the die. The top punch descends and
compresses the powder either to a predetermined
volume/set pressure.
 After pressing, both punches move upward The compact is
then ejected
 Pressing performed at high temperatures
 The die assembly is contained within a high temperature furnace
 During hot pressing the ceramic powders may sinter together to
form a high-density component.
 the ADVANTAGES of this process:
1 The powder does not have to be of the highest quality.
2 Large pores that are caused by non uniform mixing are easily
removed.
3 densify at temperatures lower (typically half the melting
temperature of the material) than those needed for conventional
pressure less sintering.
4 densify covalently bonded materials such as B4C, SiC, and Si3N4
without additives
  Graphite is the most widely
used die material (up to
2200°C, 10 - 30 Mpa)
 Graphite properties:
1 easy to machine
2 cheap
3 strength increase with T
4 good creep resistance
5 excellent thermal
conductivity
6 low coeff of thermal
 DISADVANTAGE : expansion
1 Die for high T is expensive
and do not generally last
long.
2 limited simple shape: flat
plates, block, cylinder
 apply of hydrostatic pressure to a powder
in a flexible container.
 The advantage of applying pressure in all
directions more uniform compaction of
the powder and more complex shapes
 Can be performed either with or without
applied heat.
WET BAG CIP PROCESS
ADVANTAGES:
 Wide range of shapes and sizes can be
produced
 Uniform density of the pressed product
 Low tooling costs
DISADVANTAGES:
 Poor shape and dimensional control
(particularly for complex shapes)
 Long cycle times (typically between 5 and
60 minutes)  low production rates
 In Tr, require slurry  ceramic powder particles to be
suspended in a liquid
 2 type: slip casting & tape casting
 S lip casting  slurry is poured into porous mold that remove
the liquid, leave a particulate compact in the mold
 Tape casting  to make thick film/sheet
 The slip is poured into a mold (usually plaster
of Paris-2CaSO.4H2O) that has been made
by casting round a model of the required
shape
 The mold allow for the shrinkage of the cast
ceramic on drying and sintering.
 The fineness of the powder (in the slip) and
the consequent high surface area ensure
that settling does not occur.
 Na silicate (or soda ash) is added to the slip
to deflocculate the particles. The water
passes, via capillary action, into the porous
plaster leaving a layer of the solid on the
wall of the mold. Once a sufficient thickness
has been cast, the surplus slip is poured out
and the mold and cast are allowed to dry.
 Drain slip casting the process’s terminated when
desired thickness reached, pour out the excess
slip.
 After dried, the mold is disassembled
 Characteristic the Slip high specific gravity, very
fluid & pourable
  sanitary lavatory ware, art objects
 Slip casting is a low cost way to produce complex shapes
 method for the production of teapots, jugs, and large articles
(whitewares)
 One of the t signs of slip casting ceramic is that it is hollow.
 Another variant of the slip casting process is solid/tape
casting  slip is continually added until a solid cast is made.
These items will not be hollow—relatively, they will be heavier.
 Characteristic slip: high specific gravity, very fluid, pourable
(depend on solid to water ratio), free of bubble, low drying
shrinkage & high strength
 Mold properties  quality of casting
 Usually plaster of paris  ecomonical, easy to fabricate,
reusable
 Solid casting water from slip is absorbed into the
mold when poured, leaving solid layer on the mold
wall (thickness, f=(t))
 May continue until entire mold cavity becomes solid
 Extrusion involves forcing a
deformable mass through a die
orifice (like toothpaste from a tube)
 widely used to produce ceramic
components having a uniform cross
section and a large length-to-
diameter ratio such as ceramic
tubes and rods
 Extrusion is also used to produce
the alumina shells for sodium vapor
lamps and the honeycomb-shaped
catalyst supports for automotive
emission-control devices
 Used for ceramic powder which is added to a thermoplastic polymer.
 the polymer is usually referred to as the binder
 The ceramic powder is added to the binder and other organic
materials to provide a mass that has the desired rheological properties
 The plastic mass is first heated, at which point the thermoplastic
polymer becomes soft and is then forced into a mold cavity. The
heated mixture is very fluid and is not self-supporting (this is different
from the situation encountered in extrusion). The mixture is allowed to
cool in the mold during which time the thermoplastic polymer hardens.
 complex shapes are retained with very little distortion during sintering
since the densities, although low, are uniform.

• ADVANTAGES: used to fabricate

ceramic components with complex
shapes; cycle times can be rapid 
high-volume process.
• DISADVANTAGES: initial tooling costs
is quite high
 Ceramic formed hydroplastically/slip casting 
significant porosity & insufficient strength, contain
some liquid added in previous operation
 Remove by drying  “green body”
 Continued with firing
 Defect may be introduced  results of nonuniform
shrinkage
 early stage, clay particles surrounded & separated by thin
water film
 Drying: remove some liquid remain interparticle separation
decrease (shrinkage);
 Critical to control the rate of water removal
 Drying interior is accomplished by diffusion of water
molecules to surface where evaporation occurs
 Rate of evap>diffusion surface will dry faster than interior 
shrink
 Nonuniform shrinkage & defect formation  thick >thin
pieces
 More water content more extensive the shrinkage; kept as
low as possible
 Particle size decrease  shrinkage increase
 removal of water from the shaped clay.
 The rest of the firing process causes structure changes and
transformations in the silicate itself.
 Expected  remove binder without cracking or distorting the
ceramic compact.
 Binder burnout forms defects in the processing of a ceramic:
macroscopic defects, such as cracks and blisters  affect the
mechanical strength and other properties.
 In commercial ceramic which often consists of several
components challenging to be controlled, different boiling points
and decomposition temperatures.
 The components with low boiling points (e.g., waxes)may be
removed by evaporation at fairly low temperatures.
 The process of binder removal is kept slow to redue possibility of
macrodefects being produced.
 Fire between 900-1400 C (RM composition &
desire properties)
 During firing operation  density increase
(porosity decrease) & mechanical strength
enhance
 Complex reactions occured
 vitrification: gradual liquid glass formation that
flows into & fills pore volume ; f=(T, t,
composition); accompanied by shrinkage
 Degree of vitrification controls ceramic
properties (strength, durability & density)
 Addition of fluxing agent  reduce T of liquid
phase
 Upon cooling, this fused phase forms in a
dense, strong body
 Complete vitricifation is avoided  body
become too soft, may collapse