(i) a step of disposing a powder that includes an absorber absorbing light of a wavelength included in a laser beam to be irradiated and silicon dioxide as a main component; (ii) a step of sintering or melting and solidifying the powder by irradiating the powder with a laser beam; and (iii) a step of heat-treating a shaped object formed by repeating the steps (i) and (ii) at 1470° C. or more and less than 1730° C.

A semiconductive ceramic member according to the present disclosure contains a plurality of aluminum oxide crystal grains, and a plurality of titanium oxide crystal grains. The total content of aluminum oxide and titanium oxide is 99% by mass or more per 100% by mass of all constituents. The content of the aluminum oxide is 86% by mass or more and 96% by mass or less and the content of the titanium oxide is 4% by mass or more and 14% by mass or less per 100% by mass of the aluminum oxide and the titanium oxide in total. A peak of TiO.sub.x (0<x<2) is present within a binding energy range of 456 eV to 462 eV (both inclusive) in X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurement. The semiconductive ceramic member further contains silicon, and the content of the silicon in terms of its oxide in a first region is larger than the content of the silicon in terms of its oxide in a grain boundary.

The light shielding member of the present disclosure includes an aluminum oxide ceramics including an oxide of titanium whose composition formula is shown as TiO.sub.2-x (1≤x<2), and a total content of Fe, Ni, Co, Mn and Cr is 260 mass ppm or less.

The present invention relates to a bismuth-based solid solution ceramic material, as well as a process for preparing the ceramic material and uses thereof, particularly in an actuator component employed, for example, in a droplet deposition apparatus. In particular, the present invention relates to a ceramic material having a general chemical formula (I): (I): x(Bi.sub.0.5Na.sub.0.5)TiO.sub.3-y(Bi.sub.0.5K.sub.0.5)TiO.sub.3-z.sub.1SrHfO.sub.3-z.sub.2SrZrO.sub.3, wherein x+y+Z.sub.1+Z.sub.2=1; y, (z.sub.1+z.sub.2)≠0; x≥0. In embodiments, the present invention also relates to a ceramic material having a general chemical formula (II): x(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-y(Bi0.5K0.5)TiO3-y(Bi0.5K0.5)TiO3-ZiSrHfO3-z2SrZrO3, wherein x+y+z−i+z2=1; x, y, fa+z2)≠0; as well as a ceramic material of general formula (III): y(Bi.sub.0.5K.sub.0.5)TiO.sub.3-z.sub.1SrHfO.sub.3-z.sub.2SrZrO.sub.3, wherein y+z.sub.1,+z.sub.2=1; y, (z.sub.1+z.sub.2)≠0.

To achieve local melting of an inorganic material powder containing an inorganic material as a main component in an additive manufacturing technology, to thereby achieve high shaping accuracy. Provided is an inorganic material powder to be used in an additive manufacturing method involving performing shaping through irradiation with laser light, the inorganic material powder including: a base material that is an inorganic material; and an absorber, wherein the absorber has a higher light-absorbing ability than the base material for light having a wavelength included in the laser light, and contains any one of Ti.sub.2O.sub.3, TiO, SiO, ZnO, antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO), and indium-doped tin oxide (ITO), or contains any one of a transition metal carbide, a transition metal nitride, Si.sub.3N.sub.4, AlN, a boride, and a silicide.

A monolithic porous body can comprise magneli phase titanium oxide and a developed interfacial area ratio Sdr of at least 60%. The monolithic body can further comprise a total porosity of at least 25% based on the total volume of the body. The monolithic porous body can have a high efficiency for the degradation of water pollutants if used as anode material in an electrolytic cell.

Composite materials with thermoelectric properties and devices made from such materials are described. The thermoelectric composite material may comprise a metal oxide material and graphene or modified graphene. It has been found that the addition of graphene or modified graphene to thermoelectric metal oxide materials increases ZT. It has further been found that the ZT of the metal oxide becomes effective over a broader temperature range and at lower temperatures.

Method for manufacturing porous products consisting essentially of titanium suboxide(s) of general formula TiOx, the value of x being between 1.6 and 1.9, the method including a) mixing the raw materials including at least one source of titanium dioxide, a reducing agent comprising carbon, b) forming the product, c) optionally, in particular when organic products are used during step a), thermal treatment under air or an oxidizing atmosphere, d) sintering, for example at a temperature above 1150 C. but not exceeding 1430 C., under a neutral or reducing atmosphere, in which the source of titanium dioxide consists of at least 55 wt % of anatase.

There is disclosed a piezoelectric ceramic having the composition: a[PbTiO.sub.3]-b[SrTiO.sub.3]-c[BiFeO.sub.3]-d[(K.sub.xBi.sub.1-x)TiO.sub.3]; wherein 0.4<x<0.6; 0.1<a<0.4; 0.01<b0.2; c0.05; d0.01; and a+b+c+d=1 optionally comprising an A- or B-site metal dopant in an amount of up to 2 at. %.

A time-dependent element of the present invention includes a time-dependent phase transition material that undergoes solid-solid phase transition developing with time after production irrespective of the presence of an external stimulus, in which one or more physical properties of the time-dependent element selected from a group consisting of composition, volume, transmittance, reflectance, electric resistance, and magnetic property change with time. A physical property temporal change prediction device includes a physical property temporal change prediction device body having the time-dependent element and is configured to predict a temporal change in one or more physical properties selected from a group consisting of composition, volume, transmittance, reflectance, electric resistance, and magnetic property.