Abstract: A method for determining a sintering shrinkage of a pre-sintered body. The method includes providing a green preform with at least one design feature. The green-preform is pre-sintered to form a white body. At least one change in the at least one design feature with the pre-sintering is recorded. An expected sintering shrinkage to a dense-sintered component is determined using the recorded change.

Abstract: A method for producing a porous ceramic surface layer on a substrate includes providing a mixture including at least one polymer and at least one ceramic material and applying the mixture to the substrate.

Abstract: A method for determining a sintering shrinkage of a pre-sintered body. The method includes providing a green preform with at least one design feature. The green-preform is pre-sintered to form a white body. At least one change in the at least one design feature with the pre-sintering is recorded. An expected sintering shrinkage to a dense-sintered component is determined using the recorded change.

Abstract: An yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide in predominantly tetragonal form is of the composition ZrO2 92.1%-93.5%, Y2O3 4.5%-5.5%, HfO2 1.8%-2.2%, and impurities at most 0.2%, for the production of a sintered semi-finished article as a starting material for manufacture of a prosthesis.

Abstract: An yttrium-stabilized zirconium oxide in predominantly tetragonal form is of the composition ZrO2 92.1%-93.5%, Y2O3 4.5%-5.5%, HfO2 1.8%-2.2%, and impurities at most 0.2%, for the production of a sintered semi-finished article as a starting material for manufacture of a prosthesis.

Abstract: A process for the production of a ceramic prosthesis by forming a blank from a mixture of zirconium oxide and hafnium oxide of between 94.8% and 95.3% by weight, yttrium oxide of between 4% and 5.2% by weight, and any further oxide as a balance of less than 1% by weight, with a monoclinic proportion of below 5% by volume. The blank is put into the shape of the required prosthesis by means of a rotating tool of metallically bound diamond grains, using specific operating parameters for the tool.

Abstract: The tensile loading of a ceramic-metal joint, made by shrink-fit locking a cylindrical ceramic component into a flange of ferrous material in the axial direction of the ceramic component can be improved by undersizing the diameter D of the bore of the flange by 13-27 .mu.m making it, at room temperature, this much smaller than the diameter d of that part of the ceramic component to be attached to the flange by shrink-fit locking, by preparing the cylindrical surface of the said part of the ceramic component with a surface roughness Ra of 0.05-0.2 .mu.m and the surface of the bore in the flange with a roughness Ra of 0.4-0.8 .rho.m, and by heating the flange, before fitting it to the ceramic part, to a temperature such that, after fitting together the ceramic component and the flange, the resultant stresses produced on cooling the assembly to room temperature are below the yield strength R.sub.po.