Thermoelectric (TE) nanocomposite material that includes at least one component consisting of nanocrystals. A TE nanocomposite material in accordance with the present invention can include, but is not limited to, multiple nanocrystalline structures, nanocrystal networks or partial networks, or multi-component materials, with some components forming connected interpenetrating networks including nanocrystalline networks. The TE nanocomposite material can be in the form of a bulk solid having semiconductor nanocrystallites that form an electrically conductive network within the material. In other embodiments, the TE nanocomposite material can be a nanocomposite thermoelectric material having one network of p-type or n-type semiconductor domains and a low thermal conductivity semiconductor or dielectric network or domains separating the p-type or n-type domains that provides efficient phonon scattering to reduce thermal conductivity while maintaining the electrical properties of the p-type or n-type semiconductor.

Semi-crystalline polymer-ceramic composites and methods. The ceramic-polymer composites, in powder and/or pellet forms, comprise a plurality of core-shell particles, where: each of the core-shell particles comprises a core and a shell around the core; the core comprises a ceramic that is selected from the group of ceramics consisting of: Al.sub.2O.sub.3, ZrO.sub.2, and combinations of Al.sub.2O.sub.3 and ZrO.sub.2; and the shell comprises a semi-crystalline polymer selected from the group of semi-crystalline polymers consisting of: polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyaryl ether ketone (PAEK), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), semi-crystalline polyimide (SC PI), and semi-crystalline polyamide (SC Polyamide). The core-shell particles can be in a powder form (e.g., a dry powder). In pellet form, shells of adjacent core-shell particles are joined to resist separation of the adjacent core-shell particles and deformation of a respective pellet. Methods of forming a ceramic-polymer composite comprise: superheating a mixture of the semi-crystalline polymer (PPS, PAEK, PBT, PP, PE, SC PI, and SC Polyamide), solvent, and the ceramic (Al.sub.2O.sub.3 and/or ZrO.sub.2), to dissolve the semi-crystalline polymer in the solvent; agitating the superheated mixture while substantially maintaining the mixture at an elevated temperature and pressure; and cooling the mixture to cause the semi-crystalline polymer to precipitate on the particles of the ceramic and thereby form a plurality of the present semi-crystalline polymer-ceramic core-shell particles. Methods of molding a part comprise subjecting a powder of the present semi-crystalline polymer-ceramic core-shell particles that substantially fills a mold to a first pressure while the powder is at or above a first temperature above a melting temperature (T.sub.m) of the semi-crystalline polymers.

Methods of forming nanoceramic materials and components. The methods may include performing atomic layer deposition to form a plurality of nanoparticles, including forming a thin film coating over core particles, or sintering the nanoparticles in a mold. The nanoparticles can include a first material selected from a rare earth metal-containing oxide, a rare earth metal-containing fluoride, a rare earth metal-containing oxyfluoride or combinations thereof.

Grains for the production of a sintered refractory product, a batch for the production of a sintered refractory product, a process for the production of a sintered refractory product and a sintered refractory product.

Nanopowders containing nanoparticles having a core particle with a thin film coating. The core particles and thin film coatings are, independently, formed from at least one of a rare earth metal-containing oxide, a rare earth metal-containing fluoride, a rare earth metal-containing oxyfluoride or combinations thereof. The thin film coating may be formed using a non-line of sight technique such as atomic layer deposition (ALD). Also disclosed herein are nanoceramic materials formed from the nanopowders and methods of making and using the nanopowders.

A method of forming a water resistant boundary on a fissile material for use in a water cooled nuclear reactor is described. The method comprises mixing a powdered fissile material selected from the group consisting of UN and U.sub.3Si.sub.2 with an additive selected from oxidation resistant materials having a melting or softening point lower than the sintering temperature of the fissile material, pressing the mixed fissile and additive materials into a pellet, sintering the pellet to a temperature greater than the melting point of the additive. Alternatively, if the melting point of the oxidation resistant particles is greater than the sintering temperature of UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2, then the oxidation resistant particles can have a particle size distribution less than that of the UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2

The present invention discloses magnesia and a method for manufacturing same, wherein the magnesia can be produced into granules of various shapes and sizes and can be improved in moisture resistance with the formation of a moisture resistant surface oxide layer by donor addition and then thermal treatment. The magnesia according to the present invention comprises a MgO granule; and a surface oxide layer formed on a surface of the MgO granule and a composition of the surface oxide layer is different from a composition of an inside of the MgO granule.

A method of forming a water resistant boundary on a fissile material for use in a water cooled nuclear reactor is described. The method comprises mixing a powdered fissile material selected from the group consisting of UN and U.sub.3Si.sub.2 with an additive selected from oxidation resistant materials having a melting or softening point lower than the sintering temperature of the fissile material, pressing the mixed fissile and additive materials into a pellet, sintering the pellet to a temperature greater than the melting point of the additive. Alternatively, if the melting point of the oxidation resistant particles is greater than the sintering temperature of UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2, then the oxidation resistant particles can have a particle size distribution less than that of the UN or U.sub.3Si.sub.2.

A ceramic electronic component that includes a plurality of ceramic layers which are stacked together, and an internal conductor layer disposed between two adjacent ceramic layers among the plurality of ceramic layers, and in which a ceramic layer that is adjacent to the internal conductor layer includes a plurality of pores.

A sensor element of a gas sensor includes: an element base which is a ceramic structured body including a detection part of detecting a target measurement gas component; and a protective layer which is a porous layer provided in at least a part of an outermost peripheral portion of the element base, wherein in the protective layer, numerous convex parts each having a size of 1.0 μm or less and made up of ceramic microparticles with diameters of 10 nm to 1.0 μm are discretely formed around numerous ceramic coarse grains having diameters of 5.0 μm to 40 μm, the respective ceramic coarse grains are connected to each other directly or via the ceramic microparticle, and a degree of porosity of the protective layer is 5% to 50%.