Ceramics Articles

$Superalloys, investment casting and speciality steel refractories$

Superalloys, investment casting and speciality steel refractories

Speciality steel refractories that safeguard your reputation

Quality is vital in your highly regulated sector. Your reputation and safety record depend on the purity of the molten material you produce. The refractories that distribute that material round your production line must be of the highest quality, to avoid contamination and reduce your scrap yields.

We know. We have been developing, delivering and supplying advanced refractories to the superalloy and investment casting industries for more than 70 years.

$Advanced refractories and other ceramics in the steel manufacturing process$

Advanced refractories and other ceramics in the steel manufacturing process

Improve your efficiency, with advanced refractories that last longer

When your plant has a daily throughput worth millions, you need to cut downtime wherever possible.

You want reliable supplies of high quality refractories in steel manufacturing that give you a longer campaign life or reduced scrap yields. You don’t want to stop an operation because a ceramic lining must be replaced earlier than expected. We understand that the cost of that is huge in terms of lost production in the steel manufacturing process – much bigger than the refractory’s original price tag.

$Float and container glass and advanced refractories$

Float and container glass and advanced refractories

Advanced refractories that extend campaign life and give you the edge

We work with glass manufacturers and the specialist contractors who reline their furnaces with advanced refractories. Established in 1947, we have extensive knowledge of the refractory products you need to lengthen the life of your furnaces without compromising on quality.

As a glass manufacturer, this means you will improve the productivity and efficiency of your operation, because your downtime will decrease. As a contractor, we will give you a competitive edge. You will be able to offer customers quality refractories that resist corrosion better and come with longer warranties.

Ceramic use in the cement industry

Cut your energy bills and downtime with our advanced refractories and industrial ceramics in the cement industry

Over the last 70 years we have built up extensive expertise, developing and procuring technical ceramics and refractories that resist corrosion and save energy. We also have a network of specialist manufacturers, who are keen to find new solutions to intractable problems.

We are bringing these contacts and knowledge to the cement industry, to help you in two areas: productivity and costs.

High Performance Zirconia Atomizing Nozzles

Atomizing Nozzles and atomizing systems Anderman Ceramic’s can produce in volume high performance Zirconia Atomizing Nozzles for use in the Powder Metallurgy industry. These nozzles are a key component in the manufacturer of metal powders such as Stainless Steel, Nickel & Cobalt based super alloys and other exotic alloys. Applications also include the casting and atomization of Ferrous and Non Ferrous melts.

Why consider pressed or formed ceramics?

Formed ceramics development has grown out of a long history of the use of ceramic materials, which have been used in industry for an extremely long time. Early man first developed the use of clay based ceramics to facilitate the production of metal tools alongside Chinese production of fine pottery.

Fast forward to today and ceramic materials remain one of the most important materials used world- wide. Without industrial ceramics we would have no metal production, no mass produced fabrics, no petrochemical industry, no electricity supply, and no advanced electronics. A different world to the one we all know.

Thermal shock in industrial ceramics

It is often possible to improve the performance by changing one or more of these but as with all ceramic applications thermal shock is only part of the equation and changes must be looked at in context of all the performance requirements.

Design thinking for industrial ceramics

With the current state of the industrial economy around the world this is an ideal time to consider the use of alternative materials for your applications and processes. Industrial ceramic materials, for example, offer a vast array of compositions and performance characteristics and can be a cost effective alternative in many harsh environments such as high temperature, electrical resistance, wear applications and chemical contact.

Alumina and Zirconia crucibles

The link between metals and ceramics is a long one. Archaeologists have found evidence linking the use of ceramics to contain molten metal as far back as 6000BC. Ceramic containers (Alumina and Zirconia Crucibles) continue to be used to this day.

Use of Thermocouples in Industrial Ceramics Applications

Measurement of high temperatures, greater than 1000 C, using ceramic based thermocouples is a well established process. In order to do this successfully the resistance wires within the thermocouple need to be insulated and protected.

A Substitute to Steatite: Pyrophyllite

Lava, known scientifically as Pyrophyllite, is one of the most promising natural solid materials in the world of industrial ceramics as a substitute to Steatite. Pyrophyllite can be used by customers who are in need of precision machined parts of Steatite in very small volumes for stocks, prototyping, and machinery, where it is not economically viable to manufacture the tooling necessary to produce the steatite parts. This material would an ideal substitute, primarily due to its similar properties, to Steatite. The fact that Pyrophyllite can withhold a maximum temperature of 1300oC as a refractory part means that it would be ideal for furnace parts. Lava is also capable of withstanding up to 700oC as an electrical insulator. Similarly to Steatite, it also starts to show leakages in electrical current at temperatures above700oC through a decrease in insulation.Although many of the mechanical, electrical and thermal properties are similar for both Lava and Steatite, this does not necessarily mean that the reactionary corrosion of each material will be the same. This is primarily due to the different chemical compositions of the two materials. These are because while Steatite is 65% SiO2 with 34% MgO, Lava has got 60% SiO2 with 35% Al2O3. These different compositions may result in two different reactions to the environment where the part is to be used.

How to purchase a ceramic tube?

To many businesses, purchasing ceramic tubes can be a difficult task. However, this can be made very simple if the exact material and size of the ceramic tube are known. If this however is not readily available, the more information the supplier receives then they stand a much better chance of meeting the requirements set. As with all applications involving ceramics, the selection process for the material and production method is critical if you are to achieve the most cost effective solution. If you know the exact material and size then this is easy – if not then, here is some information you need to give your supplier to make sure you will get a tube that meets your requirement.

Superior properties needed? The right material to use is fused quartz!

Chemical purity, thermal shock resistance, light transmission and other advanced performance characteristics are superior properties demanded by labware applications. Quartz offers excellent thermal, electrical, mechanical and optical properties that provide a very high performance for an extensive range of applications through industry.

Porous Fused Silica ES99P a solution for high melting temperatures

The need for increasing the working temperature and thermal loads in modern technical equipment calls for the use of materials with excellent thermal stability and high melting temperatures.