Industry
General machine construction
Technical ceramics are often used within the general machine building industry. Because the properties of the different grades of ceramics are very different, the field of application is also very diverse.
Reasons to use technical ceramics in machine building include: high resistance to wear and good corrosion resistance. Insulation (both electrical and thermal) is also an important reason to apply technical ceramics in machine building. Apart from insulation (both electrical and thermal) another important reason to apply technical ceramics in machine building is conductance.
Applications:
•(Bearing) bushings
•Pump parts
•Coatings for mixer floors, for example
•Sliding bearings
•Seals
•Plungers
•Balls (ball valves)
•Thread guides (textiles)
Insulation disc
The combination of electrical and mechanical properties makes aluminium oxide a widely used material in machine building. Despite its very high degree of hardness, the material can be machined using diamond tools. This allows for very high tolerances to be achieved, thereby meeting the high demands of high-tech mechanical engineers.
Material specification Al2O3Precision balls
Ceramic balls are used for a wide variety of applications: bearings, valves and measuring systems. Depending on the application, there is a choice of different finishes from the ISO-3290 standard. The precision balls are available in the following materials: silicon nitride (Si3N4), aluminium oxide (Al2O3) and zirconium oxide (ZrO2).