Alumina is widely used and is a commonly used material. Alumina products are present in every aspect of our lives. Are you curious about the specific uses of alumina? Then, let us take you to appreciate the alumina that is used in various industries!
Refractory Materials
Alumina is an excellent refractory material with various superior properties complementing each other. Its strong heat resistance allows alumina to operate stably in various harsh environments.
High temperature resistance is a very important property of alumina, which enables alumina to resist the erosion of extreme high temperatures and thermal stress. As a refractory material, alumina usually exists in the form of ceramic materials.
In high-temperature equipment such as industrial furnaces and high-temperature reactors, alumina is made into refractory bricks to serve as the lining and masonry of the equipment. In addition, there are various refractory tubes, refractory boards, and refractory balls.
As an insulating material, alumina is also very qualified, which can well isolate heat, protect equipment and extend the service life of equipment.
In addition to enduring high temperatures, alumina also has excellent chemical stability, which also allows alumina refractory materials to be used in some harsh chemical environments, such as some reactors and smelting industries. Alumina refractory materials can also effectively protect the furnace body from the erosion of high-temperature molten iron and slag.
Ceramic Materials
Alumina has a strong shaping ability. Through sintering, it can be made into a variety of alumina ceramics. This type of ceramic is one of the most widely used ceramics!
Alumina can be fired into the most basic geometric bodies or extremely complex precision parts. It can not only meet basic geometric applications with low shape requirements, but also cooperate with complex precision parts to form more complex structural parts.
The following figure shows you a variety of alumina ceramics
Electronics Industry
Alumina is widely used in the electronics industry. Its superior insulation properties allow very few electrons to pass through it. In various electronic semiconductor industries, it is an insulating substrate, electronic packaging, thin film circuit, thermal conductive material…
As a substrate material for electronic components, alumina substrates can carry various precision electronic components. In addition, it is also widely used in hybrid circuits, multi-chip modules and high-power IGBT modules.
In the application of semiconductors, alumina also plays a pivotal role. Alumina film can be made into metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors, which are used in power control circuits in electronic devices.
As an electronic packaging material, alumina can provide reliable protection and packaging for circuit components, preventing the external environment from damaging precision electronic components.
As a heat dissipation and thermal conductive material, heat sinks made of alumina can help electronic devices that generate heat to dissipate heat and prevent damage to electronic devices caused by excessive temperatures.
Abrasive Materials
Alumina has a high hardness, comparable to diamond, which ensures that it has a strong working quality and efficiency when used as a grinding material, and stands out among many materials.
As a highly plastic ceramic, alumina can be designed into a variety of shapes that are conducive to grinding, such as sintering into grinding balls and grinding beads. They have uniform texture, can work stably for a long time, and can grind and polish various materials well.
When alumina exists in the form of powder particles, it can be made into frosted sand. Alumina powder is widely used in various surface treatment works due to its fine particle size distribution and uniform grinding effect. As an abrasive, alumina can polish the metal surface to restore its gloss; it can also polish stone and glass to make it rich in texture.
In short, alumina as an abrasive can meet the high standards of surface treatment in various industries!
Catalysts and Catalyst Supports
Alumina can directly participate in catalytic reactions as a catalyst, or it can be used as a catalyst carrier to support and disperse catalytic components to increase the rate of catalytic reactions.
When alumina is used as a catalyst, the active sites on its surface can promote chemical reactions and reduce the activation energy required for the reaction. Some crystalline alumina (γ-Al2O3) has a porous structure. These pores are conducive to the adsorption and adhesion of reactants and can also promote the catalytic reaction.
It can be used as a catalyst carrier thanks to the various properties of alumina. Alumina can withstand the high temperature generated during the reaction and can also withstand the corrosion of most chemical substances. At the same time, the porous structure provides sufficient adhesion space for the active components of the catalyst, which can effectively improve the catalytic efficiency.
Construction Industry
In the construction industry, alumina is an excellent fireproof material. It can be used to make various fireproof bricks, fireproof glass, etc. In addition, alumina can also be a surface coating for buildings. Using alumina as a coating can effectively resist ultraviolet rays, reduce heat loss, etc. It is a multifunctional coating widely used in the construction industry.
Medical Materials
Alumina has good biocompatibility, which means it fits the medical industry well and can be used as artificial joints, implants, etc. to exist stably in the human body.
In addition to implants, alumina can also be used as a carrier and adjuvant for drugs, effectively improving the solubility and stability of drugs.
And with the development of nanotechnology, alumina nanomaterials are also shining in the medical field. The characteristics of non-toxicity, degradability, and strong sustained release make it possible to be used as a carrier for cancer drugs. In short, alumina is full of prospects in the medical industry.
Jewelry Decoration
The main components of rubies and sapphires commonly seen on the market are also α-alumina. These two gems are widely used in various jewelry and cultural gifts to make them more beautiful!
Water Treatment Applications
Alumina has a high specific surface area and porous structure, and can well adsorb organic matter, heavy metal ions, microorganisms, etc. in water. In drinking water purification, alumina can remove harmful substances such as fluoride and arsenic in water, and in the treatment of industrial wastewater, alumina can treat various heavy metal ions in wastewater and achieve standard discharge of wastewater.
Military Equipment
Alumina can be used in various military applications. As a bulletproof ceramic, its excellent hardness and cost-effectiveness occupy an important position in the field of modern bulletproof equipment.
Summarize
Alumina is widely used in all walks of life and is an indispensable material in modern times!
Further reading: Is aluminum oxide toxic?