Pre-requisites	Read all and passed at least 3 modules from ML2101 to ML2104
Workload	25 lecture hours + 6 tutorials + 12 hours laboratory
Course Lecturers	Dr Xue Jun Min       Tel: 68744869             Office: S7-03-03

1. To introduce the technological significance of ceramic materials for various demanding and challenging applications.

2. To teach students to understand why particular crystal structures form, and how they may be predicted.

3. To introduce several typical ceramic structures.

4. To examine important relationships between the atomic arrangements of crystalline and glassy structures and the physical properties of ceramics, using examples with particular technological relevance.

5. To explore a primarily graphical description of the high-temperature behavior of multicomponent systems, emphasizing two-component and three-component systems.

6. To examine the phase development of several typical ceramic systems upon cooling and heating.

7. To teach various processing steps and parameters involved in the fabrication of ceramic materials and components, such as powder preparation, formation of ceramic green articles, drying and sintering of ceramic bodies, and their impact on the structure/microstructure and performance of ceramic products.

8. To enable students to know certain novel processing techniques for improved microstructure and therefore properties of advanced ceramic materials.

9. To examine the densification theory and discuss parameters which affect the microstructural development of ceramic materials at the sintering temperature.

• Introduction to Ceramic
  • Definitions of ceramic materials
  • Classifications of ceramic materials
• Structure of Ceramics
  • Bonding in ceramic materials
  • Close-packed lattices in ceramic materials 
  • Pauling¡¯s rules
  • Typical structures of ceramic materials
• Phase Equilibria and Phase Development
  • Binary ceramic systems
  • Ternary ceramic systems
  • Phase development upon cooling and heating
• Sintering and Densification of Ceramic Materials
  • Ceramic powders
  • Shape forming and drying
  • Sintering and Densification
  • Hot isostatic pressing

(1)   S. Reed, Introduction to the Principles of Ceramic Processing, John Wiley& Sons, NY (1989), TP807 Ree.

(2)   W.D. Kingery, H.K. Bowen and D.R. Uhlmann, Introduction to Ceramics, 2nd Edition, John Wiley & Sons, NY (1976). TP807 Kin.

(3)   F.F.Y. wang, Treatise on Materials Science and Technology, Vol.9. Ceramic Fabrication Processes, Academic Press, NY (1976). TA 403 Tms.

(4)   Y.M. Chiang, D.P. Birnie and W.D. Kingery, Physical Ceramic: Principles for Ceramic Science and Engineering, John Wiley, NY (1997) TA455. Cer.C.

After comprehensive study of this module you should be able to:

1. Distinguish between the different crystal structures - rock salt, zinc blende, wurtzite, fluortie, antifluroite, rutile, corundum, and perovskite.
2. Use Pauling's rules to interprete ionic crystal structures.
3. Interprete phase diagrams for binary and ternary systems.
4. Calculate phase equilibrium composition from phase diagrams.
5. Comprehend the critical importance of processing control in determining the microstructure and therefore properties of ceramic materials.
6. Differentiate between the traditional powder preparation routes and novel processing routes for advanced ceramic powders.
7. Define the characterization parameters for ceramic powders and materials, and apply the commonly used characterization techniques to evaluate ceramic powders and materials.
8. Describe the microstructural development of ceramic materials at the sintering temperature on the basis of densification and grain coarsening.