Super critical water oxidation has been a benchtop process for quite a long time. As far as I’m aware they pretty much only use it for dealing with super toxic sludge these days, presumably because it’s too expensive to use for anything else.
It can burn just about anything which is why it’s difficult to get the ceramic pressure vessel right. Wondering if this will do anything to improve the situation.
Steel is routinely welded robotically. There are a very large number of applications where this advance in materials science will make a very large difference, keep in mind that:
- ceramics are thermally quite stable (with respect to expansion/contraction)
- ceramics do not conduct electricity
- ceramics do not melt easily
- ceramics are hard; leading to excellent longevity
I agree with you that it's a big deal to be able to do it, but I am pretty sure it'll stay specialty and extremely expensive for a long time. Brazing is good enough for a lot of things after all, just not so much against corrosion or super high temperatures.
Not OP, but generally, breakthroughs in cost, processing, treatment, and/or properties of materials can have a tremendous impact on use.
If you think about it, up until about 1800, virtually everything humans made was made of stone, earth/brick, small cermic items, wood, plant fibres, animal fibres, glass, or a few easily-worked metals.
Since 1800, vast amounts of iron, steel, aluminium, concrete, titanium, plastics, composites (usually fibre + resin), processed woods, paper, glass, and ceramics have entered into use. We build things that simply couldn't exist or perform 200, 100, or even 50 years ago.
A common problem with metals is that they're either hard to process, or rare. Ceramics are based on very available silicates (though specific properties may rely on very high purities or rare forms), and are fairly easily processed. They do tend to be brittle and handle poorly under tension, or under vibration.
Your question's likely usefully answered in terms of past revolutions in manufacturing and construction: the stone arch, Roman concrete, Egyptian pyramids, Gothic cathedrals, large warships (wood, iron, steel, aluminium), pipelines, motors, iron-framed presses and machinery, steel-framed buildings, copper-based electric motors and transmission wires, aluminium and aircraft, titanium and supersonic / hypersonic aircraft and missiles, glass and optics, plastic and mass consumer goods, silicon and electronics, artificial fibres and modern clothing.
It can burn just about anything which is why it’s difficult to get the ceramic pressure vessel right. Wondering if this will do anything to improve the situation.