Ceramics

Ceramics, materials produced by treating nonmetallic, inorganic substances (originally clay) at high temperatures. Modern ceramics include such diverse products as porcelain and china, furnace bricks, electric insulators, ferrite magnets, rocket nosecones, and abrasives. In general, ceramics are hard, are chemically inert under most conditions, and can withstand high temperatures in industrial applications. Primitive ceramics in the form of pottery date from the 5th millennium B.C.

See also: Pottery and porcelain.