Future Trends

Ceramics of the past were mostly of artistic and domestic value. Ceramics of the present have many industrial applications. Imagine what the next generation (your kids) will be doing because of advances in ceramics.

Imagine	The Future with Ceramics
Hand-held interactive videos that fit in your pocket	The electronic field looks ahead to microminiaturization of electronic devices. Ceramic engineers will turn nonfunctional packaging parts into functional components of the device. To accomplish this, new ceramic materials will be developed along with new methods to process them.
Phones that won't ring; rings that will be phones with no dial pad	The communication industry was revolutionized with the development of fiber optics. Along with microminiaturization of components will come the incorporation of opto-electronic integrated circuits.
A 300 mph train ride into Fantasy Land	High temperature superconductors will open the doors to magnetic levitation vehicles, cheap electricity, and improved MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). With micro-applications of superconductors through thin film tapes in sensors and memory storage devices, the use of superconductors will take-off.
A high speed electric car powered with a fuel cell and full of high tech sensors that practically drive the car for you.	The automobile industry, which already incorporates seventy pounds of ceramics into a car, is looking to the field of ceramics to provide improved sensors of motion, gas compositions, electrical and thermal changes; as well as light weight, high strength and high temperature components for the engines. For the conservation of energy and environmental protection, ceramics seem to be a viable possibility in the use of ceramic fuel cells, batteries, photovoltaic cells, and fiber optic transmission of energy.
A best friend that's bionic/andromic with microscopic hearing and seeing devices and a skeletal system all made from ceramics	Besides the ceramic applications in medical diagnostic instruments, the field of bioceramics for bone replacement and chemotherapy release capsules is here. As ceramic materials improve in terms of strength, nonreactivity, compatibility, longevity, porosity for tissue growth, and lower costs, more use of ceramic devices will be seen.