Ceramics

Ceramics have interesting design properties. They have excellent mechanical properties in compression, but are terrible when tensile loads are applied to them, and are typically very brittle. Porous ceramics are used in filtration, diffusion, separation and purification applications.

Uniquely porous, this ceramic material contains open-cell structure that allows the free flow of liquid or gas to an opposing structure allowing fluidic communication. Porous ceramic can be used in place of metals, plastics or fibers providing equal or higher levels of performance and extending the useful life under harsh conditions.

Porous ceramics have a wide range of uses in manufacturing across industries such as medical, mining, oil & gas exploration, alternative energy, emissions control, metal refinement, chemical processing, pharmaceutical, printing, wine making and other industries.

Specific applications include instrumentation, analytical sensors, semiconductor components, alternative energy assemblies, battery separators, emissions monitoring sensors, among many others. As with most filtration methods, water is carefully introduced to one side of the filter, which acts to block the passage of anything larger than the pore size. Typically bacteria, protozoa, and microbial cysts are removed but the filters are not effective against viruses since they are small enough to pass through to the other “clean” side of the filter. Ceramic water filters (CWF) may be treated with silver in a form that will not leach away, helping to kill or incapacitate bacteria and prevent growth of mold and algae in the body of the filter.

Ceramic filtration does not remove chemical contaminants per se. However, some manufacturers (especially of ceramic candle filters) incorporate a high-performance activated carbon core inside the ceramic filter cartridge that reduces organic & metallic contaminants. The active carbon absorbs compounds such as chlorine. Filters with active carbon need to be replaced periodically because the carbon becomes clogged with foreign material.

Related Products: Capillary Flow Porometers, Mercury Intrusion Porosimeter, BET Sorptometer, Liquid Liquid Porometers.

Related Publications: Ceramic Bulletin; Ceramic Industry: A New Technique (doc); Ceramic Industry: A New Technique (pdf); Particle Size Analysis; Pore Structure Multilayered Composites; The Fastest Technique; H. Shi, F. Liu, and L Xue (2013), J. Membr. Sci., 437, 205–215; A. Jena and K. Gupta (2001), 96, 214–219; D. Li, M. W. Frey, and Y. L. Joo (2006), J. Membr. Sci., 286, 104–114.