A base material for a membrane filter contains 90% by mass or more of aluminum oxide and 0.1% by mass or more and 10% by mass or less of titanium oxide. In a pore distribution curve measured by a mercury porosimeter, the base material has a first peak and a second peak which is higher than the first peak and is located at a pore size larger than that of the first peak, and the volume of pores with a pore size of 7 μm or more is 0.02 cm.sup.3/g or more.

Provided is a lead-free piezoelectric material reduced in dielectric loss tangent, and achieving both a large piezoelectric constant and a large mechanical quality factor. A piezoelectric material according to at least one embodiment of the present disclosure is a piezoelectric material including a main component formed of a perovskite-type metal oxide represented by the general formula (1): Na.sub.x+s(1−y)(Bi.sub.wBa.sub.1−s−w).sub.1−yNb.sub.yTi.sub.1−yO.sub.3 (where 0.84≤x≤0.92, 0.84≤y≤0.92, 0.002≤(w+s)(1−y)≤0.035, and 0.9≤w/s≤1.1), and a Mn component, wherein the content of the Mn is 0.01 mol % or more and 1.00 mol % or less with respect to the perovskite-type metal oxide.

Organosilicon chemistry, polymer derived ceramic materials, and methods. Such materials and methods for making polysilocarb (SiOC) and Silicon Carbide (SiC) materials having 3-nines, 4-nines, 6-nines and greater purity. Processes and articles utilizing such high purity SiOC and SiC.

Organosilicon chemistry, polymer derived ceramic materials, and methods. Such materials and methods for making polysilocarb (SiOC) and Silicon Carbide (SiC) materials having 3-nines, 4-nines, 6-nines and greater purity. Processes and articles utilizing such high purity SiOC and SiC.

Provided is a method for producing a wavelength conversion sintered body that emits light under irradiation of excitation light. The method for producing a wavelength conversion sintered body includes: preparing a molded body obtained by molding a mixture containing an α-SiAlON fluorescent material and aluminum oxide particles and having a content of Ga of 15 ppm by mass or less; and primary calcining the molded body at a temperature in a range of 1,370° C. or more and 1,600° C. or less to obtain a first sintered body.

A silicon nitride sintered body includes a silicon nitride crystal grains and grain boundary phases. Further, when D stands for width of the silicon nitride sintered body before being subjected to surface processing, relations between an average grain diameter dA and an average aspect ratio rA of the silicon nitride crystal grain in a first region from an outermost surface to a depth of 0 to 0.01D and an average grain diameter dB and an average aspect ratio rB of the silicon nitride crystal grain in a second region inside the first region satisfy the inequalities:

0.8≤ dA/dB≤ 1.2; and

0.8≤ rA/rB≤ 1.2.

A ceramic composition contains Fe, Cu, Ni, Zn, Co, and Cr. When Fe, Cu, Ni, and Zn are converted to Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, CuO, NiO, and ZnO, respectively, and a total amount of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, CuO, NiO, and ZnO is 100 parts by mole, the ceramic composition contains from 48.20 to 49.85 parts by mole Fe in terms of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, from 2.00 parts to 8.00 parts by mole Cu in terms of CuO, from 11.90 to 18.70 parts by mole Ni in terms of NiO, and from 27.00 to 33.50 parts by mole Zn in terms of ZnO. When Fe, Cu, Ni, and Zn are converted to Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, CuO, NiO, and ZnO, respectively, and a total amount of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, CuO, NiO, and ZnO is 100 parts by weight, the ceramic composition contains from 5 to 100 ppm Co in terms of CoO and from 10 to 400 ppm in terms of Cr.sub.2O.sub.3.

A lead-free piezoelectric ceramic sensor material and a preparation method thereof, and relates to the technical field of piezoelectric ceramic processing. The main raw materials of the lead-free piezoelectric ceramic sensor material disclosed in the present disclosure are a barium carbonate, a calcium carbonate, a zirconia, a titanium dioxide, a strontium carbonate, an oxidation bait, a bismuth oxide, a composite binder and a dispersant agent. The preparation method is prepared through the steps of preparing ingredients, ball milling, granulating and tableting, debinding, and sintering, and the lead-free piezoelectric ceramic sensor material can be made into a lead-free piezoelectric sensor through applying an electrode and electrode polarizing. The present disclosure has an excellent compactness and a good chemical stability. And the piezoelectric sensor made of the lead-free piezoelectric ceramic sensor material has a high sensitivity, a strong working stability, an excellent piezoelectric and has a high Curie temperature.

Polycrystalline cubic boron nitride, PCBN, material and methods of making PCBN. A method includes providing a matrix precursor powder comprising particles having an average particle size no greater than 250 nm, providing a cubic boron nitride, cBN, powder comprising particles of cBN having an average particle size of at least 0.2 μm, intimately mixing the matrix precursor powder and the cBN powder, and sintering the intimately mixed powders at a temperature of at least 1100° C. and a pressure of at least 3.5 GPa to form the PCBN material comprising particles of cubic boron nitride, cBN dispersed in a matrix material.

Thermal barrier coatings consist of a tantala-zirconia mixture that is stabilized with two or more stabilizers. An exemplary thermal barrier coating consists of, by mole percent: about 8% to about 30% YO.sub.1.5; about 8% to about 30% YbO.sub.1.5 or GdO.sub.1.5 or combination thereof; about 8% to about 30% TaO.sub.2.5; about 0% to about 10% HfO.sub.2; and a balance of ZrO.sub.2.