A cermet material, including a plurality of ceramic particles defining a ceramic portion; and a plurality of high magnetic permeability metallic particles distributed throughout the ceramic portion to define an admixture. The ceramic particles and the metallic particles are generally the same size and shape. Each respective high magnetic permeability metallic particle has a magnetic permeability of at least 0.0001 H/m. The ceramic particles are selected from the group consisting of zirconia, yttria stabilized zirconia, zirconia toughened alumina, alumina, gadolinium oxide, TiB.sub.2, ZrB.sub.2, HfB.sub.2, TaB.sub.2, TiC, Cr.sub.3C.sub.2, and combinations thereof.

The present invention relates to methods and apparatuses for forming high temperature ceramic powders. A method of producing high temperature ceramic powders according to an embodiment of the present invention can include preparing a solution, atomizing the solution, providing a gas and carrying the atomized solution into a furnace via the gas, evaporating the solvent, precipitating and drying the solutes, performing a thermolysis (or pyrolysis) reaction, and performing a carbothermal reduction reaction (CTR) in situ, and collecting product particles after they exit from the furnace.

Disclosed is a method of fabricating a preceramic polymer for making a ceramic material including a metal boride. The method includes providing a starting preceramic polymer that includes a silicon-containing backbone chain and first and second reactive side groups extending off of the silicon-containing backbone chain, reacting a boron-containing material with the first reactive side group to bond a boron moiety to the silicon-containing backbone chain, and reacting a metal-containing material with the second reactive side group to bond a metal moiety to the silicon-containing backbone chain such that the preceramic polymer includes the boron moiety and the metal moiety extending as side groups off of the silicon-containing backbone chain. Also disclosed is a preceramic polymer composition and a metal-boride-containing ceramic article fabricated from the preceramic polymer.

The present invention relates to a method of producing ultra-high melting point nonoxide ceramics with low porosity based on sintering at low temperatures of below about 1000 C. with low DC electric fields of less than about 100 V/cm.

A method includes providing a ceramic fiber preform with a range of 20 to 40 volume percent fiber which can include silicon carbide fibers; coating the ceramic fiber preform with a boron nitride interface coating; infiltrating the ceramic fiber preform with a ceramic matrix with a range of 20 to 40 volume percent silicon carbide; infiltrating the ceramic fiber preform with a constituent material such as boron carbide, boron, and carbon; and infiltrating the ceramic fiber preform with a eutectic melt material where the metallic eutectic melt can include at least one material from a group consisting of: a transition metal-silicon eutectic melt such as zirconium silicide, a transition metal-boride eutectic melt such as zirconium boride, and a transition metal-carbide eutectic melt such as zirconium carbide.

A method for producing a metal detectible ceramic, including mixing a first amount of ceramic material with a second metal oxide to define an admixture, forming the admixture into a green body, sintering the green body to yield a densified body, wherein the densified body has a plurality of metallic particles distributed therethrough, and wherein the densified body is detectible by a metal detector.

A composition having nanoparticles of a refractory-metal boride and a carbonaceous matrix. The composition is not in the form of a powder. A composition comprising a metal component, boron, and an organic component. The metal component is nanoparticles or particles of a refractory metal or a refractory-metal compound capable of decomposing into refractory metal nanoparticles. The organic component is an organic compound having a char yield of at least 60% by weight or a thermoset made from the organic compound. A method of combining particles of a refractory metal or a refractory-metal compound capable of reacting or decomposing into refractory-metal nanoparticles, boron, and an organic compound having a char yield of at least 60% by weight to form a precursor mixture. A composition having nanoparticles of a refractory-metal boride that is not in the form of a powder.

A method for manufacturing a diboride powder MB.sub.2 by dry route where M is a chemical element belonging to group 4 of the periodic table, from the reduction of an oxide MO.sub.2 of the element M according to the balance reaction MO.sub.2+B.sub.2O.sub.3+yR+xA.sub.2O.fwdarw.MB.sub.2+A.sub.2xR.sub.YO.sub.5+x, wherein R is a reducing element selected from Al, Si, Ti, Zr, Hf, Y, Sc, and the lanthanides and A.sub.2O is an oxide of alkali element A.

A composition having nanoparticles of a refractory-metal boride and a carbonaceous matrix. The composition is not in the form of a powder. A composition comprising a metal component, boron, and an organic component. The metal component is nanoparticles or particles of a refractory metal or a refractory-metal compound capable of decomposing into refractory metal nanoparticles. The organic component is an organic compound having a char yield of at least 60% by weight or a thermoset made from the organic compound. A method of combining particles of a refractory metal or a refractory-metal compound capable of reacting or decomposing into refractory-metal nanoparticles, boron, and an organic compound having a char yield of at least 60% by weight to form a precursor mixture. A composition having nanoparticles of a refractory-metal boride that is not in the form of a powder.

A method of making a fiber reinforced composite includes: infiltrating a preform having a perimeter with an electrophoretic gel; adding nanoparticles to wells located in the electrophoretic gel outside the preform perimeter; introducing the nanoparticles to the preform using gel electrophoresis; removing the electrophoretic gel to result in a preform having embedded nanoparticles; and infiltrating the preform having embedded nanoparticles with a matrix material or a matrix material precursor.