A formulation usable to produce plates and shaped bodies has a base slip, quartz glass particles and multicomponent glass particles that are crystallizable or at least partly crystallized. The base slip contains water as dispersion medium with a content between 30% and 50% by weight and ultrafine SiO.sub.2 particles distributed, preferably colloidally therein, with a proportion between 50% and 70% by weight. The proportion of quartz glass particles in the formulation is in the range from 40% to 70% by weight and the proportion the multicomponent glass particles in the formulation is in the range from 5% to 37% by weight. The formulation can be used in a composite material. Firing aids can be made from the composite material.

An apparatus for making a composite article includes a monofilament feed track adapted to carry a spaced array of ceramic monofilament strands, a fiber yarn feed track adapted to carry a spaced array of fiber yarn tows impregnated with a plurality of glass particulates, a mandrel, and a heater assembly. The mandrel is adapted to wind together individual glass-impregnated fiber yarn strands and individual ceramic monofilament strands to form a dual-fiber weave. The heater assembly is adapted to heat at least the glass particulates such that pressure from the wound array of ceramic monofilaments is sufficient to consolidate the glass particulates and the dual-fiber weave into a dual-fiber ceramic matrix composite (CMC).

A resistive composition that can form a thick film resistor excluding a toxic lead component from a conductive component and glass and having characteristics equivalent to or superior to conventional resistors in terms of, in a wide resistance range, resistance values, TCR characteristics, current noise characteristics, withstand voltage characteristics and the like. The resistive composition of the present invention includes: ruthenium-based conductive particles including ruthenium dioxide; a glass frit that is essentially free of a lead component; and an organic vehicle, wherein the glass frit is a glass frit which is constituted such that in a case where a fired product of a mixture of the glass frit and the ruthenium dioxide has in a range of 1 k/ to 1 M/, the fired product exhibits a temperature coefficient of resistance in a plus range.

The present invention relates to a composite material, particularly a composite material for ceramic tiles, stone cladding, surface tops (e.g. worktops), and the like. The composite materials are typically derived from waste products. The composite materials of the present invention are formed from a glass component and a non-glass mineral component (e.g. ceramics and/or glaze). Generally the composite materials do not require any binders (especially synthetic binders) to hold the materials together. Therefore, the composite materials and products made therefrom are typically recyclable.

ZrO.sub.2-toughened glass ceramics having high molar fractions of tetragonal ZrO.sub.2 and fracture toughness value of greater than 1.8 MPa.Math.m.sup.1/2. The glass ceramic may also include also contain other secondary phases, including lithium silicates, that may be beneficial for toughening or for strengthening through an ion exchange process. Additional second phases may also decrease the coefficient of thermal expansion of the glass ceramic. A method of making such glass ceramics is also provided.

A solid state method of producing inorganic nanoparticles using glass is disclosed. The nanoparticles may not be formed until the glass is reacted with or degraded by contact with a fluid in vivo or in vitro.

ZrO.sub.2-toughened glass ceramics having high molar fractions of tetragonal ZrO2 and fracture toughness value of greater than 2 MPa.Math.m.sup.1/2. The glass ceramic may also include also contain other secondary phases that may be beneficial for toughening or for strengthening through an ion exchange process. Additional second phases may also decrease the coefficient of thermal expansion of the glass ceramic. A method of making such glass ceramics is also provided.

A method of forming a macrocomposite including dispersing or immersing a first material in a second material. The first material includes a stone and the second material a glass; or the first material may be glass and the second material stone. The macrcocomposite may further include metal. Preferably, the macrocomposite does not include an organic resin, an adhesive, or a polymer.

A method of manufacturing a polarizing glass sheet includes subjecting, while heating, a glass preform sheet containing metal halide particles to down-drawing, to thereby provide a glass member having stretched metal halide particles dispersed in an aligned manner in a glass matrix, and subjecting the glass member to reduction treatment to reduce the stretched metal halide particles, to thereby provide a polarizing glass sheet. A shape of the glass preform sheet during the down-drawing satisfies a relationship of the following expression:

L.sub.1/W.sub.11.0

where L.sub.1 represents a length between a portion in which a width of the glass preform sheet has changed to 0.8 times an original width and a portion in which the width of the glass preform sheet has changed to 0.2 times the original width W.sub.0, and W.sub.1 represents a length equivalent to 0.5 times the original width W.sub.0 of the glass preform sheet.

Laminated glass articles and methods for making the same are disclosed. In one embodiment, a laminated glass article may include a glass core layer and at least one glass cladding layer fused to the glass core layer. The at least one glass cladding layer may be phase separated into a first phase and at least one second phase having different compositions. The first phase of the at least one glass cladding layer may have an interconnected matrix. The at least one second phase of the at least one glass cladding layer may be dispersed throughout the interconnected matrix of the first phase of the at least one glass cladding layer. In some embodiments, the at least one second phase may be selectively removed from the interconnected matrix leaving a porous, interconnected matrix of the first phase.