As we all know, engines are the "heart" of vehicles, ships and airplanes. Who has ever seen a car or airplane without an engine? The main part of the engine is the cylinder, and the quality of the cylinder is the key to determining the performance of the engine.
In the past, automobile engine cylinders were made of alloy steel. The working temperature of this kind of cylinder is only about 1000°C, and it must be cooled by circulating water, otherwise the cylinder will be heated, deformed and scrapped. Low cylinder operating temperature will not only cause energy waste due to insufficient combustion of fuel, but also greatly limit the speed of cars, ships, and airplanes.
The U.S. military once conducted an interesting experiment: On the starting line of the 200-meter runway at the exercise ground, there were two tanks parked, one equipped with a 500-horsepower steel engine, and the other equipped with a There is a ceramic engine with the same horsepower. The ceramic engine is indeed very capable. The tank took only 19 seconds to reach the finish line first, while the steel engine tank took 26 seconds to complete the distance after being fully warmed up. The secret lies in the high thermal efficiency of the ceramic engine, which not only saves 30% of heat energy, but also increases the working power by more than 45% compared to steel engines. In addition, ceramic engines do not require a water cooling system, and their density is only about half that of steel, which is also important for reducing the weight of the engine itself.
If the high-temperature resistant parts of the engine are coated with a layer of high-temperature ceramics, the inherent strength and toughness of the metal material can be maintained while having the high-temperature resistance characteristics of high-temperature ceramics. According to reports, this method can increase the heat resistance of the engine air intake duct surface from 1200°C to 1700°C.