Across our 7 ceramic materials, we offer 25+ production grades covering different purity levels, sintering routes, and application-specific optimizations. This guide explains what each grade is optimized for and gives you a quick decision framework — so you spec the right grade the first time and don't pay for performance you don't need.
When buyers spec "silicon nitride" or "alumina" on a drawing, they usually have no idea that the same material name covers 3–5 different production grades, each optimized for a different application family and priced 30–200% apart. Picking the right grade for your duty profile is the single biggest cost-optimization lever on a ceramic specification.
| Material | Unit | Grade Count | Price Range | Most-Used Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silicon Nitride (Si₃N₄) | grades | 4 | 1× to 3× | Igniter Grade (BLK) |
| Alumina (Al₂O₃) | purity | 3 | 1× to 4× | 99% Engineering |
| Zirconia (ZrO₂) | variants | 3 | 1× to 1.5× | Y-TZP (default) |
| Silicon Carbide (SiC) | routes | 3 | 1× to 10× | SSiC (default) |
| Aluminum Nitride (AlN) | forms | 3 | 1× to 5× | Standard substrate |
| Boron Carbide (B₄C) | routes | 3 | 1× to 2× | Hot-Pressed (armor) |
| Boron Nitride (BN) | types | 2 | 1× to 5× | h-BN (default) |
Below are the standard grade picks for each material, with the duty-profile question that determines the choice. If your application doesn't fit any of these, contact our engineering team — most "edge case" specs we see are actually one of these standard grades plus a custom finishing step.
Standard: general structural. HIP-Processed: precision balls G3–G5. Igniter Grade (BLK): 100K+ thermal cycle. Cutting Grade: high-speed machining inserts. Most customers want Standard or Igniter Grade — HIP is reserved for aerospace bearings.
95%: industrial wear, grinding media, low-V insulators. 99%: engineering default — heating rods, thermocouple sheaths. 99.7%: semiconductor wafer fixtures, lab crucibles, spectral analysis tubes. Most customers want 99%.
Y-TZP: default — biomed, cutting tools, balls. Mg-PSZ: higher service temp (1400°C). Ce-TZP: better wet/steam resistance. 90% of orders go to Y-TZP. Mg-PSZ for extrusion dies, Ce-TZP for steam-cycled environments.
SSiC (Pressureless): default — pump seals, structural. RBSiC (Reaction-Bonded): lower cost, complex shapes, kiln furniture. CVD-SiC: semiconductor purity (10× cost). Most customers want SSiC; RBSiC only for kiln furniture; CVD-SiC only for wafer fab.
Standard: 170 W/m·K, most heater and substrate applications. High-K: 200 W/m·K, power-density-critical electronics. DBC/DBA-Metallized: pre-bonded copper or aluminum for direct power module assembly. Standard covers 70% of orders.
Hot-Pressed: armor tiles, high-density. Pressureless Sintered: lower cost, complex shapes. Reaction-Bonded: cost-effective for wear applications. Armor work always uses Hot-Pressed (98%+ density required).
Hot-Pressed h-BN: machinable, general crucibles and machined parts. Pyrolytic (PBN): ultra-pure, anisotropic thermal, semiconductor plasma chambers (3–5× h-BN cost). Use h-BN unless your application is semiconductor or aerospace insulator.
If you're not sure which grade fits — that's fine, most customers aren't. Send your drawing and a description of your duty profile (temperature, cycles, environment). We'll recommend the right grade within 48 hours, with our reasoning.
If you don't have time to read the full guide, these three rules cover 80% of grade decisions correctly. Apply them in order.
A German lab equipment manufacturer was spec'ing 99.7% alumina for all their lab tube furnace components. After DFM review of their actual operating spec (1200°C lab service, no plasma or wafer contact), we recommended 99% engineering grade for everything except the spectral analysis tubes. Material cost dropped 35% across the product line with no measurable performance change. They've expanded the right-sizing exercise across their full ceramic component bill of materials.