Transparent PERLUCOR Advanced Ceramics
CeramTec GmbH has succeeded in becoming Europe's first company to manufacture highly transparent and extremely durable ceramics on a series-production scale and to transfer the advantages of ceramics to a transparent material. The result of this development is PERLUCOR: a mechanically, chemically, thermally and optically perfected solution for transparent applications in extreme conditions. In virtually every area its properties are far superior to conventional glasses.
Its high transparency grade – ceramic has an optical grade of > 92% relative transparency (> 80% IT) – opens up fields of application for PERLUCOR everywhere glass reaches its limits. PERLUCOR exhibits three to four times the hardness and strength of conventional glass, making it well suited for use in extreme wear conditions. Further unique properties include the material's higher (by a factor of three) thermal stability, which makes it suitable for use at temperatures up to 1,600°C, along with its extraordinarily high chemical stability, which means it can also be used with highly concentrated acids and lyes.
PERLUCOR's high index of refraction (1.72) makes it possible to miniaturize optical lenses and other optical elements. This means that small part sizes can be used to realize powerful magnifying effects that would be extremely difficult to achieve on the basis of polymers or glasses. Moreover, the development of PERLUCOR has enabled CeramTec to achieve a savings in weight of over 30% compared to conventional bullet-proof glass systems. These countless advantages make the use of PERLUCOR in mechanical, plant or equipment engineering, medical engineering and optical applications and in the areas of lighting, design, jewelry and architecture conceivable.
The possibilities are endless with PERLUCOR: The standard tile size is 90 x 90 mm; however, CeramTec can also manufacture individual contours based on customer specifications from this format. Panel thickness can be individually tailored to a tenth of a millimeter and is generally between 2-10 mm, though thinner elements are also conceivable.
Standard tiles can be combined into multi-tile composites to create large surfaces. The edges are processed using a method specially developed by CeramTec: PERLUGLUE gluing technology makes it possible to manufacture an ideally adapted optical surface whose joints and abutting edges are "invisible". This means that PERLUCOR can also be used to produce large inspection windows.
PERLUCOR ceramic is resistant to both acids and bases and can be used as a process window in chemical processing equipment and measuring instruments even with high concentrations.
CeramTec products are often unseen, but always indispensable.The products are used in many different applications today, especially in mechanical engineering, automotive manufacturing, electronics, equipment and mechanical engineering, defense systems, energy and environmental technologies, and in chemical industries. The company's success is rooted in the formula: Continued development of new, innovative materials with a strong commitment to quality, a focus on customer-specific systems solutions and dialog-based application consulting services that cover the entire product life cycle. CeramTec GmbH is one of the largest international manufacturers of ceramics for technically demanding applications.
