Advanced Ceramics Soar to New Heights

摘要

Aerospace manufacturers face extreme pressure to lower costs while increasing performance and satisfying stringent safety standards. Producers in the commercial airline, defense, and space exploration sectors continually seek new materials that are reliable and robust, and meet the needs of highly specialized applications. Advanced ceramics, such as alumina, silicon nitride, and aluminum nitride, are being used to manufacture critical aerospace components because they have several advantageous physical properties. These inorganic, non-metallic materials retain dimensional stability through a range of high temperatures and exhibit very high mechanical strength. They also demonstrate an excellent chemical resistance and stiffness-to-weight ratio, thereby providing manufacturers with the ability to design components that offer optimal performance in their intended application.