Chapter 8

Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond:

Structure, General Properties, and
Applications
QUALITATIVE PROBLEMS
8.19 Explain why ceramics are weaker in tension than in compression.
Ceramics are very sensitive to cracks, impurities, and porosity, and thus generally have
low toughness. In compression, however, the aws in the material do not cause stress
concentrations or crack propagation, as they do in tension.
8.20 What are the advantages of cermets? Suggest applications in addition to
those given in this chapter.
High-temperature oxidation resistance and toughness are the advantageous properties
of cermets. They also may be useful for components in furnaces (such as moving belts)
and automotive-engine parts (such as pistons and cylinders).
8.21 Explain why the electrical and thermal conductivity of ceramics decreases
with increasing porosity.
Pores in the ceramic are usually lled with air, and air has much lower thermal and
electrical conductivity than ceramics. Increasing porosity will thus reduce the ceramics
thermal and electrical conductivities.
8.22 Explain why the mechanical property data given in Table 8.2 have such a
broad range. What is the signicance of this in engineering practice?
The properties given in Table 8.2 on p. 201 vary greatly because the mechanical prop-
erties of ceramics depend greatly on the quality of the raw material, porosity in the
product, and the manner in which the product is made. Engineering applications that
require high mechanical properties must ensure that the material quality and processing
of the part are the best available.
8.23 Describe the reasons that have encouraged the development of synthetic
diamond.
92
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 93
By the student. Synthetic diamonds were rst used exclusively in industrial applications;
they have superior properties to natural diamonds because of the absence of impurities.
The hardness of diamond makes it useful in machining and grinding hard metallic and
nonmetallic materials. For widespread and economical use, diamonds are mass produced
synthetically.
8.24 Explain why the mechanical properties of ceramics generally dier from those
of metals.
Metals and ceramics have dierent types of bonding, metallic and ionic, respectively.
Ionic bonds are stronger than metallic bonds, hence more force must be applied to
the material to break the bonds. The crystal structure for ceramics is generally more
complex than metals, and requires higher forces to cause slip. Also, the high-temperature
properties of ceramics are very attractive in many applications.
8.25 Explain how ceramics can be made tougher.
Ceramics may be made tougher by using high-purity raw materials, controlled processing
techniques, and adding various reinforcements. The presence of tougher second phases
and microcracks (less than one m in size) in the ceramic can also reduce the energy
of propagation of an advancing crack tip. (See also partially stabilized zirconia, Section
8.2.2 on p. 196.)
8.26 List and describe situations in which static fatigue can be important.
By the student. There are numerous possible answers. Static fatigue occurs in environ-
ments where water vapor is present and the part is under a constant load. In applications
such sewer piping, if a tensile stress is developed in the pipe by bending or torsion, static
fatigue can be a signicant problem. Any situation where a tension member is exposed
to water vapor (such as mounting brackets or structural members outdoors) are also
subject to static fatique. Some MEMS devices see failure of borosilicate glass layers due
to static fatigue as well.
8.27 What properties are important in making heat-resistant ceramics for use on
oven tops? Why?
Heat-resistant ceramics for oven tops should possess hot corrosion resistance to maintain
their appearance, hardness for wear and scratch resistance, and toughness for impact
loading. Because the heating of oven top is uneven, thermal gradients will be set up
across the surface. To minimize the possibility for thermal cracking, the oven top should
have low coecient of thermal expansion and high thermal conductivity.
8.28 A large variety of glasses is now available. Why is this so?
By the student. The cost of each type of glass varies, and a high-quality glass (high cost)
shouldnt be used in a low-quality application. However, high quality glasses are required
for ber optics, which need to transmit light with high eciency. Other applications
may require high strength, low cost, chemical resistance, impact resistance, abrasion
resistance or resistance to thermal shock, which would be best exhibited by 96% silica
or fused-silica type glass. Thus, in summary, there are a large variety of glasses available
because of the large variety of applications where glass is used.
8.29 What is the dierence between the structure of graphite and that of dia-
mond? Is it important? Explain.
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 94
Graphite has a crystalline form of a layered structure of basal planes of close-packed
carbon atoms (see Fig. 1.5 on p. 41). Diamond, on the other hand, has a covalently
bonded structure. The structure of graphite permits easy slip on basal planes, while the
covalent bonding of diamond greatly restricts slip, thus making it very hard.
8.30 List and explain materials that are suitable for use as a coee cup.
By the student. A coee cup must obviously be made of a material that is safe for
food contact, so it should not aect or be aected by coee. In addition, it should be
inexpensive. Furthermore, it must be thermally insulating, have a melting point higher
than the boiling point of water, and be easy to clean. Ceramics, polymers, porous
polymers (foams), and multi-layered metals (with air or a vacuum between layers) are
thus suitable.
8.31 Aluminum oxide and PSZ are described as white in appearance. Can they
be colored? If so, how would you accomplish this?
Both aluminum oxide and partially stabilized zirconia can be produced in a variety of
colors. This can be done by using impurities in small concentrations in the ceramic,
which develop a color. There is, of course, also the option of enameling, painting, or
coloring the surfaces.
8.32 Why does the strength of a ceramic part depend on its size?
Ceramic strength is mainly compromised by the presence of aws where cracks can
initiate. In a small volume, there is less likelihood that a large aw or a number of aws
can exist, while the reverse is true for larger parts, i.e., in a large volume, it is more
likely that a large aw will exist (see also the discussion regarding Fig. 2.11 on p. 67).
8.33 In old castles and churches in Europe, the glass windows display pronounced
ripples and are thicker at the bottom than at the top. Explain.
The silica in the glass is not really solid; it is merely a supercooled liquid. Over centuries,
the glass has creeps or ows due to the force of gravity. This situation depends greatly
on the type of glass, as some will creep faster than others.
8.34 Is a carbide an example of a composite material? Explain.
This depends on the extent to which the denition is applied. Cobalt is often the
matrix, with tungsten-carbide particles serving as a discontinuous phase. Two-phased
metal allows, where the second phase is insoluble in the rst, is a similar structure, but
alloys are not generally considered to be composite materials.
8.35 Ceramics are hard and strong in both compression and shear. Why, then,
are they not used as nails or other fasteners? Explain.
Ceramics arent used as nails or other fasteners because they have poor impact resistance
and thus would not be able to be driven into a workpiece with impact forces as applied
by a hammer. Other fasteners such as bolts depend on a tensile proof stress (the proof
strength of a bolt is a common design specication) for a well-designed joint, and this
would be a poor design application for a ceramic which is weak and has a wide range of
strengths in tension.
8.36 Perform an Internet search and determine the chemistry of glass used for (a)
ber-optic communication lines, (b) crystal glassware, and (c) high-strength
glass bers.
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 95
By the student. There are a large number of answers possible. For example, ber-
optic communication lines will be graded according to their intended distance for signal
transmission, and crystal glassware will have a variety of formulations.
8.37 Investigate and list the ceramics used for high-temperature superconductor
applications.
By the student. This is an area of signicant ongoing development. In recent years, sig-
nicant progress has been made in understanding high-temperature superconducting ma-
terials and their potential use as conductors. Two bismuth based oxides (Bi
2
Sr
2
CaCu
2
O
x
, also known as Bi-2212, and Bi
2
Sr
2
CaCu
3
O
x
or Bi-2223) are superconducting, ceramic
materials of choice for various military and commercial applications, such as electrical
propulsion for ships and submarines, shallow-water and ground minesweeping systems,
transmission cable generators, and superconducting magnetic-energy storage (SMES).
However, wide variations in the electrical performance of test magnet coils using monol-
ament superconducting strips indicate that multilament conductors are essential in re-
liably achieving the required critical current densities, so that property variations are
averaged over a length. Tape stacking is a new approach to manufacturing multila-
ment tape. In this method, 7 to 10 monolament tapes or strips are stacked, heated,
and pressed together; the resulting laminate is then rolled to nal thickness. The quality
and performance of multilament tapes are directly related to that of the constituents
i.e. the monolament tape. A variety of processes have been explored to produce wires
and tapes, using Bi-2212 and Bi-2223.
8.38 Explain why synthetic diamond gemstones are not appreciably less expensive
than natural diamond gemstones.
This is surprising at rst. There is signicant labor involved in mining natural diamond,
and then an addition cost to ship them to markets. However, there is also signicant cost
involved in growing articial diamond. However, gemstones require signicant polishing
before they are useful, and facets in the stone must be ground and polished with great
precision. The vast majority of the cost associated with gemstones is associated with
the polishing processes involved.
QUANTITATIVE PROBLEMS
8.39 In a fully dense ceramic, UTS
o
= 200 MPa and E
o
= 330 GPa. What are
these properties at 15% porosity for values of n = 4, 5, 6, and 7, respec-
tively?
Inserting the appropriate quantities into the Eqs. (8.1) and (8.2) on p. 202, we obtain
the following:
n UTS (MPa) E (GPa)
4 109 242.6
5 94.5 242.6
6 81.3 242.6
7 70.0 242.6
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 96
Note that the magnitude of n does not aect the magnitude of E.
8.40 Plot the UTS, E, and k values for ceramics as a function of porosity P.
Describe and explain the trends that you observe in their behavior.
Equations (8.1) through (8.3) on pp. 201-202 are needed to solve this problem. The
curves can be obtained using an assumed value at zero porosity, or else they can be
non-dimensionalized, as shown below. The plots are as follows:
Porosity (%)
0 10 20 30 40 50
U
T
S
/
U
T
S
o
1
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
n=7
n=4
n=5
n=6
Porosity (%)
0 10 20 30 40 50
E
/
E
o
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
Porosity (%)
0 10 20 30 40 50
k
/
k
o
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
0.9
1.0
There are several observations that can be made. Most striking is the near-linear be-
havior of stiness and thermal conductivity with respect to porosity, and the highly
nonlinear behavior of strength. Thus, to produce high-strength ceramics, reduction of
porosity is especially important.
8.41 What would be the tensile strength and the modulus of elasticity of the
ceramic in Problem 8.39 for porosities of 25% and 50%, for the four n values
given?
Equations (8.1) and (8.2) on p. 202 are needed to solve this problem. Inserting the
appropriate quantities into these equations, we obtain the following:
n UTS (MPa)
P = 0.25 P = 0.50
4 73.6 27.0
5 57.3 16.4
6 44.6 9.95
7 34.7 6.09
The modulus of elasticity values are as follows: for P = 0.25, E = 191 GPa, and for
P = 0.50, E = 90.7 GPa.
Note that the porosities that are examined in this problem are far outside those nor-
mally encountered with ceramics. The equations for strength and stiness are not very
applicable to this extreme range. However, students can be encouraged to discuss the
validity of the approach and whether or not the values obtained are realistic.
8.42 Calculate the thermal conductivities for ceramics at porosities of 10%, 20%,
and 40% for k
o
= 0.7 W/mK.
Equation (8.3) on p. 202 is needed to solve this problem. Inserting the values into the
equation, we obtain thermal conductivities of:
P = 10% k = 0.63 W/mK
P = 20% k = 0.56 W/mK
P = 40% k = 0.42 W/mK
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 97
8.43 A ceramic has k
o
= 0.80 W/mK. If this ceramic is shaped into a cylinder
with a porosity distribution given by P = 0.1(x/L)(1 x/L), where x is
the distance from one end of the cylinder and L is the total cylinder length,
plot the porosity as a function of distance, evaluate the average porosity, and
calculate the average thermal conductivity.
The plot of porosity is as follows:
P
o
r
o
s
i
t
y
0.025
0.02
0.015
0.01
0.005
0
0 0.25 0.5 0.75 1
Position, x/L
For the remainder of the problem, use X = x/L. The average porosity is given by

P =

1
0
0.1X(1 X)dX =

1
0

0.1X
2
+ 0.1X

dX = 0.0167
Since the thermal conductivity is linearly related to the porosity, the average porosity
can be used, so that the average thermal conductivity is:

k = k
o

1

P

= (0.80)(1 0.0167) = 0.787 W/mK

8.44 It can be shown that the minimum weight of a column which will support a
given load depends on the ratio of the materials stiness to the square root
of its density. Plot this property for a ceramic as a function of porosity.
The stiness of a ceramic is given by Eq. (8.2) on p. 201 as E = E
o
(1 1.9P + 0.9P
2
).
The density is given by =
o
(1 P). Therefore, the desired quantity is:
E

=
E
o

1 1.9P + 0.9P
2

o
(1 P)
The plot is as shown below in dimensionless form.
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 98
E/E
o
/
o
1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0 10 20 30 40 50
Porosity (%)
SYNTHESIS, DESIGN AND PROJECTS
8.45 Make a list of the ceramic parts that you can nd around your house or in
your car. Give reasons why those parts are made of ceramics.
By the student. Some examples are: Bathroom xtures: they will not discolor or corrode
in normal use, are hard enough to resist the abrasive action of cleaning powders, and are
relatively inexpensive. Coee mugs: their smooth nish makes them easy to clean, are
corrosion resistant, and are inexpensive. Light-xture components: electric insulators
and resistant to heat. Spark plugs: thermal and electrical insulation and corrosion
resistance.
8.46 Assume that you are working in technical sales and are fully familiar with all
the advantages and limitations of ceramics. Which of the markets tradition-
ally using nonceramic materials do you think ceramics can penetrate? What
would you like to talk about to your potential customers during your sales
visits? What questions do you think they may ask you about ceramics?
By the student. There are a number of acceptable answers to this question, and students
should not be restricted to the answer given here. Applications that require high hot
strength and wear and corrosion resistance in components such as car engines. Benecial
features of properties should be pointed out, along with recent trends in the improvement
of properties. All the advantages that ceramics have over the current material should
also be pointed out. Questions concerning the brittleness and low toughness would also
be raised, as well as questions concerning the consistency of the quality of ceramic parts,
particularly as their size and shape complexity increases.
8.47 Describe applications in which a ceramic material with a near-zero coecient
of thermal expansion would be desirable.
By the student. A ceramic material with a near-zero coecient of thermal expansion
will have a lower tendency of thermal cracking when exposed to temperature gradi-
ents. This property would be useful in applications where the ceramic would be cycled
through temperature ranges, as with space shuttle tiles and cutting tools in machining,
particularly in interrupted cutting operations such as milling.
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 99
8.48 The modulus of elasticity of ceramics is typically maintained at elevated
temperatures. What engineering applications could benet from this char-
acteristic?
By the student. Note that by retaining their high stiness at elevated temperatures,
dimensional accuracy can be maintained. Some examples are bearings, cutting tools,
turbine blades, machine-tool components, and electronics. The student is encouraged to
expand on this answer.
8.49 List and discuss the factors that you would take into account when replacing
a metal component with a ceramic component in a specic product.
By the student. Note, for example, that the main limitations of ceramics are low tensile
strength and low toughness. The application of the metal component that would be
replaced should, therefore, not require high tensile strength or high impact resistance.
8.50 Obtain some data from the technical literature in the Bibliography of this
chapter, and show quantitatively the eects of temperature on the strength
and the modulus of elasticity of several ceramics. Comment on how the
shape of these curves diers from those for metals.
By the student. The general trend that will be seen is that such properties as strength
and stiness do not change as drastically as in metals (see, for example, Fig. 22.1 on
p. 592).
8.51 Conduct a literature search and write a brief paper summarizing the prop-
erties and potential applications of graphene.
By the student. Graphene is a single sheet of graphite, and it has been suggested that
it has many properties, especially in MEMS and microelectronics.
8.52 It was noted in Section 8.4.1 that there are several basic types of glasses
available. Make a survey of the technical literature and prepare a table for
these glasses, indicating various mechanical, physical, and optical properties.
By the student. A large variety of answers are possible. For example, the following table
is given in Schey, J., Introduction to Manufacturing Processes, 3d ed., p. 500, based on
data from D.C. Boyd and D.A. Thompson:
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 100
Property Corning glass works code number and type
7940 E glass 7740 1720 0800 8871 8830
fused boro- alumino- soda-lime- potash- boro-
silica silicate silicate silica lead silicate
Composition, wt%
SiO
2
99.9 54 81 62 73 42 65
B
2
O
3
10 13 5 23
Al
2
O
3
14 2 17 1 5
Na
2
O 4 1 17 2 7
K
2
O 6
Li
2
O 1
CaO 17.5 8 5
MgO 4.5 7 4
PbO 49
Viscosity,
at

C
10
14.5
(hard) 956 507 510 667 473 350 460
10
13
(anneal pt.) 1084 657 560 712 514 385 501
10
7.6
(soft) 1580 846 821 915 695 525 708
10
4
(working) 1252 1202 1005 785 1042
Coecient 55 60 33 42 92 102 49.5
of thermal
expansion,
10
7
/

C
8.53 Ceramic pistons are being considered for high-speed combustion engines.
List the benets and concerns that you would have regarding this application.
By the student. Ceramic pistons would be advantageous in that they would have a
high strength and potentially low wear. In addition, the inertial forces associated with
a ceramic piston would be much lower than for a metal one, and the need for cooling
the piston becomes less imperative. The main drawbacks are that the ceramic could
excessively wear the cylinder liner; with three-body wear, any ceramic wear particles
could cause severely damage in the engine. Also, the low fracture toughness of the
ceramic may cause catastrophic failure of the engine.
8.54 It has been noted that the strength of brittle materials (such as ceramics and
glasses) is very sensitive to surface defects, such as scratches (known as notch
sensitivity). Obtain several pieces of these materials, scratch them, and test
them by carefully clamping them in a vise and bending them. Comment on
your observations.
By the student. Note that special care must be taken in performing these experiments,
and eye protection and the like are necessary. This experiment can be performed using a
glass cutter to make a deep and sharp scratch on the glass. It can be demonstrated that
glass, with such a scratch, can be easily broken with bare hands (using work gloves). Note
also the direction of the bending moment with respect o the direction of the scratch. As
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.
Ceramics, Graphite, and Diamond: Structure, General Properties, and Applications 101
a comparison, even a highly heat-treated aluminum plate will not be nearly as weakened
when a similar scratch is made on its surface.
8.55 Electric space heaters for home use commonly utilize a ceramic lament as
the heating element. List the required properties for this lament, explain
why a ceramic is a suitable material, and perform an Internet search to
determine the specic ceramic material actually utilized in this application.
This is an open-ended problem, and students should be encouraged to obtain their own
solutions with as specic of answers as possible. Some of the mechanical properties
required for the lament are:
High melting point
Sucient rigidity so that it does not deect in its retainer.
Sucient strength to withstand thermal strains.
Low coecient of thermal expansion so that excessive stresses or deections do not
occur during operation.
There are many types of ceramics used in such heaters, such as aluminisilicates of various
types.
2014 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ. All rights reserved. This publication is protected by Copyright and written permission should be obtained from
the publisher prior to any prohibited reproduction ,storage in a retrieval system, or transmission in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or likewise. For information regarding permission(s), write to : Rights and Permissions Department, Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458.