Disclosed is a sanitary ware having not only a practical antivirus property but also a property which allows a pollution to be difficultly attached to, and to be easily removed from the sanitary ware. A sanitary ware comprising a pottery substrate and a glaze layer formed on a surface of the pottery substrate, wherein the glaze layer contains a metal element as an antivirus agent, and the metal element is present in a state of a spinodal phase separation in at least a surface region of the glaze layer, has a practical antivirus property as well as a property which allows a pollution to be difficultly attached to, and to be easily removed from, the sanitary ware.

A composite member includes an inorganic matrix part made from an inorganic substance including at least one of a metal oxide or a metal oxide hydroxide and an organic fiber that is directly fixed to the inorganic matrix part without interposing an adhesive substance different from the inorganic substance making up the inorganic matrix part and is present in a dispersed state within the inorganic matrix part. The composite member has a porosity of 20% or less in a section of the inorganic matrix part.

A composite member includes an inorganic matrix part made from an inorganic substance and a dispersed component present in a dispersed state within the inorganic matrix part and having elasticity, wherein a material making up the dispersed component has a modulus of elasticity in tension of 100 Pa or more and 3.5 GPa or less. The composite member has a porosity of 20% or less in a section of the inorganic matrix part.

The present invention provides a bidirectional energy-transfer system comprising: a thermally and/or electrically conductive concrete, disposed in a structural object; a location of energy supply or demand that is physically isolated from, but in thermodynamic and/or electromagnetic communication with, the thermally and/or electrically conductive concrete; and a means of transferring energy between the structural object and the location of energy supply or demand. The system can be a single node in a neural network. The thermally and/or electrically conductive concrete includes a conductive, shock-absorbing material, such as graphite. Preferred compositions are disclosed for the thermally and/or electrically conductive concrete. The bidirectional energy-transfer system may be present in a solar-energy collection system, a grade beam, an indoor radiant flooring system, a structural wall or ceiling, a bridge, a roadway, a driveway, a parking lot, a commercial aviation runway, a military runway, a grain silo, or pavers, for example.

The present invention relates to a laminated member including: a glass member having a linear transmittance at a wavelength of 850 nm of 80% or more; a bonding layer including a resin and lying on the glass member; and a Si—SiC member lying on the bonding member, in which the Si—SiC member has an average linear expansion coefficient α at from 20° C. to 200° C. of from 2.85 ppm/° C. to 4.00 ppm/° C.

A method is provided for preserving cooking oil in a food fryer which comprises contacting the oil in situ with at least one oil-permeable cement body which is a stand-alone block and which has been hydraulically hardened from a paste comprising (i) white OPC clinker, (ii) white OPC or (iii) a mixture of white OPC clinker and white OPC, wherein the porosity of the cement body, estimable from the difference between its water-saturated and dry weights, is 30-55%, pores in the body being oil receptive by virtue of low un-bound water content.

An appliance cabinet includes a structural envelope having an exterior surface and an interior surface that defines an insulating cavity, wherein the insulating cavity defines an at least partial vacuum. A plurality of silica-based agglomerates are disposed within the insulating cavity, wherein each agglomerate of the plurality of silica-based agglomerates includes silica-based powder insulation material that is water-densified and is at least substantially free of a material binder. A secondary insulation material is disposed within interstitial spaces defined between the plurality of silica-based agglomerates, wherein the plurality of silica-based agglomerates defines an interior structure that resists inward compressive forces exerted as a result of the at least partial vacuum defined within the insulating cavity.

The present invention provides a fiber-reinforced cement composition comprising; cement, fiber, silica, filler, expanded perlite, and polymer. The fiber-reinforced cement composition according to the present invention has low density, high toughness and flexural strength, and not contains volatile composition. When it is molded into workpiece, the workpiece is lightweight, easy to be cut and/or lathed into desired shapes, drilled and fixed with screws and/or repeatedly nailed at the same position, tolerant to humidity, termites and insects, inflammable and does not produce powder when cut, drilled and/or lathed that is hazardous to the workers. Therefore, it is suitably applicable for being utilized as a material for manufacturing furniture parts.

The present invention relates to a synthetic mineral composition. The present invention also relates to a method of forming a synthetic mineral composition. The present invention also relates to uses of a synthetic mineral composition.

An appliance cabinet includes a structural envelope having an exterior surface and an interior surface that defines an insulating cavity, wherein the insulating cavity defines an at least partial vacuum. A plurality of silica-based agglomerates are disposed within the insulating cavity, wherein each agglomerate of the plurality of silica-based agglomerates includes silica-based powder insulation material that is water-densified and is at least substantially free of a material binder. A secondary insulation material is disposed within interstitial spaces defined between the plurality of silica-based agglomerates, wherein the plurality of silica-based agglomerates defines an interior structure that resists inward compressive forces exerted as a result of the at least partial vacuum defined within the insulating cavity.