Reactive Processing in Ceramic‐Based Systems

Reactive hot pressing is discussed as a processing method to form ceramic‐based materials. Fundamental aspects of thermodynamics such as favorable Gibbs'‐free energy changes, phase equilibria, and adiabatic temperature are presented as criteria for determining whether the desired reactions can be used to form dense materials. Two case studies are presented as examples to describe control of microstructure and properties. The fabrication of Al 2 O 3 –Nb and ZrB 2 are discussed with respect to the three thermodynamic criteria as well as the microstructure and properties of the materials that are produced.