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Ceramic materials generally have many useful properties that are not found in metals or high polymer materials, but on the other hand they are hard and brittle, making them difficult to process. In recent years, attempts have been made to overcome this problem and a number of machinable ceramics have been developed under the catchphrase “mechanical processing is possible.” These ceramics have attracted a lot of attention. However, although they are machinable, their mechanical strength is less than 100MPa, so it is difficult to use them for engineering applications. SHAPAL-M soft is a new type of machinable ceramics developed using the Tokuyama translucent aluminum nitride ceramics manufacturing technology, a brand-new product in the world. It is possible to take advantage of the properties of SHAPAL-M soft that did not exist in former products, and apply it to a wide range of fields including engineering applications.

The mechanism that makes SHAPAL-M soft easy to process

The lamellar crystal particles shown in the SEM image above prevents the cracks produced by cutting tools at the surface from proceeding to the inside.

Features

1.	Excellent machinability
	・	A wide range of machine processing, such as drilling, grinding, and milling, is possible
	・	It is possible to machine complicated shapes with high precision, which is very difficult to get with ordinary ceramics.
2.	Excellent shape properties in vacuum environment
3.	High thermal conductivity
	・	Approximately 5 times high thermal conductivity as alumina.
4.	High mechanical strength
	・	It has a bending strength of 300MPa, which is comparable to that of alumina
5.	Good electrical insulator
6.	Low thermal expansion coefficient
7.	High heat resistance
8.	Low dielectric constant and low dielectric loss
9.	High purity
	・	SHAPAL-M soft is a sintered compound of AlN and BN.

Major Applications

Taking advantage of its excellent machinability
1.	Making prototypes for mass production

Taking advantage of the unique properties of SHAPAL-M soft
2.	Vacuum parts
3.	Electronic parts requiring heat dissipation and electrical insulation
4.	Jigs and setters requiring a low thermal expansion rate
5.	All parts requiring high frequency wave properties ( low dielectric constant, dielectric loss )
6.	Heat sinks
7.	Crucibles for vacuum deposition
8.	Insulators and protective tubes for special furnaces
9.	Others (structural materials)

Physical Properties (Typical values)

Physical Properties		Units	Test Conditions	Shapal-M soft	Machinable Crystallized Glass
General	Density	g/cm³	4℃に補正	2.88	2.52
General	Porosity	%	25℃	0	0
Electrical	Volume Resistivity	Ωcm	25℃、DC	1.4x10¹²	10¹⁴
	Dielectric Loss		25℃、1MHz	9.1x10^-4	0.003(10kHz) 0.007(8.6GHz)
	Dielectric Constant		25℃、1MHz	6.9	5.92(10kHz) 5.68(8.6GHz)
	Withstand Strength	kV/mm	25°C (Sample Thickness)	56.3 (1mm)	40 (0.25mm)
Thermal	Thermal Conductivity	W/mK	25℃	96	1.7
	Maximum Use Temperature	℃	In air	1000	1000(Unstressed)
	Maximum Use Temperature	℃	In non-oxidizing atmosphere	1900	---
	Thermal Shock Resistance	℃	Water quench	400	---
Mechanical	Bending Strength	MPa	25℃	273	100

* Values are typical; not for specification.

Impurities

With carefully selected materials and appropriately controlled processes, we have achieved a very low level of impurities in the SHAPAL-M soft.

Ca	Cr	Mg	Ni	Fe	Si	O
450ppm	60ppm	15ppm	＜5ppm	20ppm	＜15ppm	0.5%

* Values are typical; not for specification

Thermal Conductivity by Temperature

Comparison of Properties of Machinable Ceramics

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