87445 - Ceramics Technology and Materials Characterization M

Learning outcomes

Introduction to the characteristics, the properties, the manufacturing, the application and the recycling of ceramic materials. Knowledge of basic and advanced techniques for mechanical, thermal and morphological characterization of materials.

Course contents

Materials characterization

• Influence of chemical bonding on mechanical properties of materials. Brittle and ductile failure. Methods for determination of mechanical properties of materials: hardness, tensile, flexural and compressive tests, impact testing.
• Amorphous and crystalline structures. Bravais lattices and typical unit cells of metals and ceramics. Polymorphism: examples of silica and zirconia. Defects in crystal structures and their effects on mechanical properties.
• X-ray diffraction (XRD) with Bragg-Brentano and grazing incidence geometry (GID). Neutron and electron diffractometry.
• Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis) and infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (XRF)
• Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)
• Optical microscopy. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).
• Thermal analyses: thermogravimetry (TGA), differential thermal analysis (DTA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC)
• Ionic chromatography and other chromatographic techniques
• Methods for determination of porosity: water absorption, mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), nitrogen adsorprion with BET method and computed tomography (CT).

 

Ceramics technology

• Ceramics classification in traditional (glasses, bricks, tiles, cements, abrasives, refractories) and advanced ceramics (oxides and non-oxides).
• Classification of silicates: clays, micas, quartz, feldspars, zeolites. Raw materials for ceramic products: clays, fluxing agents and fillers. Role of water content.
• Forming of ceramic products: powder pressing, wet molding, extrusion. Firing of traditional ceramics and reactivity as a function of the firing temperature. Creation of new crystalline phases and development of mechanical properties. Vitrification.
• Traditional ceramic products. Bricks: raw materials, production process, final properties. Influence and determination of porosity. Mechanical properties, durability and sustainability.
• Ceramic tiles: raw materials and production process. Surface treatments: pigments and dyes. Functionalization of ceramic tiles by photocatalytic nanoparticles. Classification of ceramic tiles.
• Glasses: structure, composition, physical, chemical, mechanical, thermal, optical properties. Production process (float technology).
• Cements: raw materials, production process, final properties and applications.
• Concrete: production process, properties, durability and sustainability issues.
• Alkali activated materials. Refractory materials and abrasives.
• Advanced ceramics: oxides (alumina, zirconia, titania) and non-oxides (carbides, nitrides, borides).
• Bioceramics and bioglasses for medical applications and regenerative medicine.
• Cases studies from academia and industry.

Readings/Bibliography

• W.D. Callister and D. G. Rethwisch Materials science and engineering - An introduction, VIII Edition, John Wiley & Sons.
• R.B. Heimann, Classic and advanced Ceramics – From fundamentals to applications, Wiley-VCH
• Biomaterials science - An introduction to materials in medicine. B. D. Ratner, A. S. Hoffman, F. J. Schoen, J. E. Lemons. Academic Press Elsevier, 2013
• Instrumental methods of analysis. Hobart H. Willard, Lynne L. Merritt Jr, John A. Dean, Frank A. Settle Jr. CBS.

Teaching methods

Lectures in classroom and practical classes in the laboratory.

Assessment methods

Oral exam on the contents of the course.

The exam is aimed at assessing whether the student has developed knowledge on the topics covered within the course and has developed the ability to critically apply the acquired knowledge (e.g. by knowing how to apply the acquired concepts to new cases and how to perform comparisons and selections).

The ability to express the acquired knowledge and ability by using proper technical lexicon is taken into consideration to award the final grade.

Teaching tools

Slides shown during the classes are made available to the students through Virtuale.

Office hours

See the website of Enrico Sassoni