Ron,
"Ceramics" is a broad term.
You could go to any number of ceramics studios in your area and get a
wide variety of materials and processes demonstrated.
1)Silicone molds are often used to produce high detail parts, but the
sintering process causes warpage in non-uniform cross sections.
2)Plaster molds are used to produce hollow near-uniform wall parts by
slip casting liquid clay mixtures into them and pouring out the excess
after a time. The water soaks into the plaster at the surface and the
clay hardens. Vases, statues, figurines, sinks, toilets...
3)Ceramic tiles are usually produced by stamping dry powder in a metal mold
to produce a "green" part, a glaze is then added and it is then "fired" or
"sintered" to produce the part. Many carbide tool inserts are made this way
without the glaze of course.
4)Commercial dinnerware is produced by extruding a clay mixture and then
spinning, stamping, molding... to create the shapes desired and then
"sintering" or "firing" them.
5)Hand made ceramics use all of the above plus hand forming or spinning on
a potters wheel. Another process used is rope lay-up... roll long strands
of clay and build the shape desired one layer at a time (manual RP circa
6000 BC).
6) In the "High Tech" arena there are processes that spin fibers into
threads that are then matted to create insulation tiles (US Space Shuttle
Heat Sheild) and there are even more exotic manufacturing processes that
produce a wide variety of application specific parts, but for your basic
ceramic part it's just:
Shape or Mold clay mixture, Glaze if desired, Fire or "Sinter" and you got
Ceramics.
Larry Blasch
Design Engineer
OPW Fueling Components
Cincinnati, OH 45240-5003
Voice: (513) 870-3356
Fax: (513) 874-1231
e-mail: lblasch@opw-fc.com
______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Casting Ceramics
Author: "Ron Hollis" <rhollis@quickparts.com> at internet
Date: 9/10/99 6:01 PM
Anyone with information on casting Ceramics in RTV molds?
Source of materials?
Is it a 2-part mixture for a room-temperature operation?
Does it work with silicone?
Gotchas?
Thanks!
-------------------------------------------------
Ronald L. Hollis, P.E.
Rapid Tech Engineering, Inc
1580 Sparkman Drive, Ste 212
Huntsville, AL 35816
rhollis@quickparts.com
256-830-8121
256-864-0025 (FAX)
www.quickparts.com
For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/
For more information about the rp-ml, see http://ltk.hut.fi/rp-ml/
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