Abstract: By adding very-finely-divided or highly-dispersed titanium dioxide or aluminum titanate, optionally in a mixture with aluminum oxide, sintered products of great hardness, whose fracture toughness can be adjusted over a wide range, are obtained from aluminum hydroxide according to a sol-gel process depending on the selection of the sintering conditions. The materials are especially suitable as abrasives or for the production of ceramic powder or components.

Abstract: By adding very-finely-divided or highly-dispersed titanium dioxide or aluminum titanate, optionally in a mixture with aluminum oxide, sintered products of great hardness, whose fracture toughness can be adjusted over a wide range, are obtained from aluminum hydroxide according to a sol-gel process depending on the selection of the sintering conditions. The materials are especially suitable as abrasives or for the production of ceramic powder or components.

Abstract: A process for scrubbing exhaust gases from diesel engines using filter cartridges of open pore ceramic foam are such that the filter cartridges are situated in the exhaust gas stream such that the exhaust gases strike the filter cartridge end and flow through it parallel to its central axis. As a result the amount of soot deposited is greatest in the part of the cartridge first meeting the inflowing exhaust gases, and decreases rapidly with increasing throughput; consequently the low efficiency part contributes greatly to the undesired backpressure. The proposed process, in which the exhaust gases flow through the most efficient part of the filter cartridge made of open pore ceramic foam, is such that the exhaust gases flow essentially transverse to the longitudinal axis and thus does not exhibit these disadvantages.

Abstract: Filter medium in the form of a stable porous body of granules of spherical form bonded together by a different phase or by sintering. Preferably hollow spherical granules of corundum are manufactured into filter media in plate form. The filter media are employed for filtration of molten metal preferably aluminum.

Abstract: Ceramic, porous filter body in the designed to overcome the lack of high temperature resistant thermoshock resistant and mechanical stable bodies for the filtration of metals, preferentially of iron and ferrous alloys. This filter body has a temperature resistance of 1600.degree. C., a linear thermal coefficient of expansion of 3-7.times.10.sup.-6 /.degree.C. and consists of hollow spheres based on minimum one homogeneous distributed refractory material and another refractory material, which at high temperature by chemical reaction forms with the hollow spheres a solid refractory binding phase. A process for the production of such a filter body is described such, that the spheres of the refractory materials are mixed with a powderous binding phase, then formed to a porous body and then, by retention of the porous homogeneous structure under formation of new refractory compositions by heat treatment are chemically reacted, at least in the contact areas of the spheres.

Abstract: Filter medium in the form of a stable body made of ceramic material and employed for filtering molten metals. The filter medium is made up of at least two effective filter layers such that a relatively thick layer of large pore diameter lies on a relatively thin layer of small pore diameter. This arrangement aims at attaining the maximum possible wetting of the interior of the filter medium.