Many believe that the silicon/information age is heading to the Age of Biology and that the next frontier in ceramics will most likely require molecular level or nanoscale control. What, then, is the role of ceramics in the age of biology? As we change from an energy-rich society to an energy-declining society, how can ceramic materials appease the problem? This new edition of Chemical Processing of Ceramics offers a scientific and technological framework for achieving creative solutions to these questions. Edited by experts and containing chapters by leading researchers in the field, the book uses an interdisciplinary approach to cover topics ranging from starting materials to device applications. The book begins with a discussion of starting material, highlighting how to prepare and modify them in the nanoscale range. The chapter authors discuss the synthesis, characterization, and behavior of ceramic powders, the processing of ceramic films via sol-gel technique, and the fabrication of nonoxide ceramics. They also present coverage of several specific thin films, membranes, ferroelectrics, bioceramics, dieletrics, batteries, and superconductors. Although the book is edited, it is organized to reflect the chemical sequence of ceramic processing and the coherent theme of chemical processing for advanced ceramic materials. The coverage of molecular/nanoprocessing techniques that result in new materials will enable researchers and engineers to meet the challenge of producing inorganic materials for use in the applications of the future.

Approximately four million years of human history has passed. We have been using materials to make a variety of tools. The first materials used were naturally occurring materials such as animal bones, stones, wood etc.; and some of these familiar materials are porous. Porous materials are so familiar that they are sometimes forgotten or ignored. The taste experience of ice cream is created not only by adjusting ingre dients, but also by including air as an ingredient, i.e. pores that give the smooth texture of ice cream. This book is designed to describe and explain about pores, the synthesis of materials with pores (porous materials), and applications of porous materi als. This book is intended for engineers and scientists of different disciplines and specialities, and is expected to be useful in the design and synthesis of porous materials for existing as well as potential new applications. Let us rediscover pores. K. Ishizaki, S. Komameni and M. Nanko January 1998 1 Introduction 1.1 WHAT ARE POROUS MATERIALS? Porous materials are dermed as solids containing pores. Figure 1.1 shows different porous materials. Generally speaking, porous materials have a porosity of 0.2-0.95. The porosity means the fraction of pore volume to the total volume. Porous materials have been used in various applications from daily necessities, such as purifying drinking water by activated carbon or porous ceramics, to uses in modern industries, for example removing dusts from high purity process gases for semiconductor production.

Approximately four million years of human history has passed. We have been using materials to make a variety of tools. The first materials used were naturally occurring materials such as animal bones, stones, wood etc.; and some of these familiar materials are porous. Porous materials are so familiar that they are sometimes forgotten or ignored. The taste experience of ice cream is created not only by adjusting ingre dients, but also by including air as an ingredient, i.e. pores that give the smooth texture of ice cream. This book is designed to describe and explain about pores, the synthesis of materials with pores (porous materials), and applications of porous materi als. This book is intended for engineers and scientists of different disciplines and specialities, and is expected to be useful in the design and synthesis of porous materials for existing as well as potential new applications. Let us rediscover pores. K. Ishizaki, S. Komameni and M. Nanko January 1998 1 Introduction 1.1 WHAT ARE POROUS MATERIALS? Porous materials are dermed as solids containing pores. Figure 1.1 shows different porous materials. Generally speaking, porous materials have a porosity of 0.2-0.95. The porosity means the fraction of pore volume to the total volume. Porous materials have been used in various applications from daily necessities, such as purifying drinking water by activated carbon or porous ceramics, to uses in modern industries, for example removing dusts from high purity process gases for semiconductor production."

This book provides an international and interdisciplinary forum for the discussion of advances in the research of nanophase and nanocomposites. The term 'nanophase' refers to nanoscale particles of one phase, whereas the term 'nanocomposite'refers to a composite of more than one Gibbsian solid phase where at least one dimension is in the nanometer range. The book, the second in a series, features reports showing that bulk materials with nanostructure (< 0.5m) often have enhanced and unique properties when compared to their coarse-structured (>1m) equivalents. A wide range of science and engineering disciplines are represented, with topics ranging from synthesis and processing, to properties and applications. Topics include: nanophase oxides; nanophase metals, alloys and non-oxides; nanophases - simulation studies; magnetic and metal nanocomposites; oxide, non-oxide and oxide-metal nanocomposites; organic-inorganic and sol-gel nanocomposites; and nanocomposites of layered and mesoporous materials.

The only book to provide a complete survey -- from the crystallographic fundamentals right up to recent high-tech applications in aerospace technology.
Following a general introduction to the topic, the authors go on to cover the crystal chemistry of mullite and related phases, as well as its basic properties, phase equilibria and stability. One whole section is devoted to the synthesis and processing of mullite ceramics, while later ones cover mullite coatings, fibers and matrix composites.
For materials scientists, solid state chemists and physicists, crystallographers and mineralogists.