Advertise on podcast: Ceramic Tech Chat

Archaeology may be the study of our past, but we are using increasingly futuristic techniques and technologies to reveal these long-ago cultures. Fumie Iizuka, assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, shares her journey to studying the relationship between pottery and ancient cultures, describes some of the techniques she uses in the field, and discusses how being a member of ACerS has benefited her research. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Fumie Iizuka is assistant professor of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She studies the climate and ecosystem factors that led hunter-gatherers and early farmers to adopt pottery, with a focus on Eastern Eurasia. She served as chair of ACerS Art, Archaeology & Conservation Science Division in 2024–2025, and she enjoys the opportunities that ACerS provides to discuss effective materials characterization methods with scientists of different backgrounds. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Modern electronics are expected to perform multifunctional tasks, and interdisciplinary knowledge is required to develop these materials and systems. Ruyan Guo, the Robert E. Clarke Endowed Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Texas at San Antonio, talks about her experiences doing electronics research at both The Pennsylvania State University and UT San Antonio, describes how she helped launch an interdisciplinary graduate program at the latter institution, and shares the ways in which she is giving back to the ceramics community by serving previously as a National Science Foundation program director and currently on the ACerS Board of Directors. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Ruyan Guo is the Robert E. Clarke Endowed Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Her research group specializes in the study and development of multifunctional materials for electronic devices. She previously served as a program director in the Electrical, Communications, and Cyber Systems Division of the National Science Foundation’s Directorate for Engineering, helping coordinate national research during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. She is now serving on the ACerS Board of Directors. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Undergraduate research experiences have many well-known benefits for those just starting on their potential career path. Mario Affatigato, the Fran Allison and Francis Halpin Professor of Physics at Coe College, shares how his initial experiences with glass research as a student at Coe came full circle when he returned to Coe as a professor, describes the fundamental and applied glass science that his research group conducts, and discusses his plans and goals as president of ACerS this year. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Mario Affatigato is the Fran Allison and Francis Halpin Professor of Physics at Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. His group studies various glass-related questions from both a fundamental and applied perspective, including electrical conductivity of vanadate glasses and laser-based manufacturing. He is serving as this year’s president of The American Ceramic Society, and he is also editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Applied Glass Science.  About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Reducing carbon emissions in the cement and concrete industry is a complex, multifaceted challenge. Juan Pablo Gevaudan, assistant professor of architectural engineering at The Pennsylvania State University, talks about how his childhood desire to protect the environment led to his eventual work in cement, describes some of the research taking place in the cement industry to reduce carbon emissions, and shares how his identity as a Latino and Hispanic scientist plays a role in his approach to learning and teaching. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Juan Pablo Gevaudan is assistant professor of architectural engineering at The Pennsylvania State University. As head of the D/Carb Group at Penn State, JP works with students on developing solutions to reduce carbon emissions in the cement and concrete industry by taking a whole lifecycle approach to the challenge. He is actively involved in the ACerS Cements Division, currently serving as secretary for the 2025–2026 term. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Glass is generally considered inert, but recent decades have seen increasing interest in glasses that react more readily with their environment. Courtney Calahoo, research and development team lead at Genics, shares her journey to working on dissolvable glasses, describes some of her current projects, and provides examples of how Indigenous knowledge can benefit modern scientific research. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Courtney Calahoo is research and development team lead at Genics Inc., a chemical manufacturer in Alberta, Canada. She became interested in dissolvable glasses while working in Lothar Wondraczek’s group at the Otto Schott Institute of Materials Research, and she now develops dissolvable glass rods for wood preservation at Genics. During the International Year of Glass celebrations at the United Nations in 2022, Courtney talked about her experiences as an Indigenous woman glass scientist and the overlap between Indigenous knowledge and glass science. Read a summary of her talk here and watch the recording here (2:35:00 mark). Learn more about the ingenuity of Indigenous materials scientists in this book. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Recent decades have seen a resurgence in interest and funding for hypersonics research. Rod Trice, professor of materials engineering at Purdue University, briefly overviews the history of hypersonic flight, describes current hypersonic vehicle design paradigms and materials, and shares his expectations for the future of this critical national defense sector. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Rod Trice is professor of materials engineering at Purdue University. His group works on the processing and forming of ceramics for hypersonic applications. Since January 2024, Rod has helped support the ACerS–USACA Materials Training Program by teaching a short course on hypersonic materials. The program recently received a two-year funding extension from the U.S. government and will continue in 2026. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Many patients—and sometimes even dentists—are not aware of the many ceramic and glass materials that sneakily find application in the dental world. Carolyn Primus, medical device consultant, shares her journey into the field of dental materials, provides a glimpse of the history and variety of ceramic materials used in dentistry, and describes some of the ways she’s personally contributed to this field. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Carolyn Primus is a medical device consultant and adjunct associate professor at Augusta University in Georgia. She has spent more than 35 years working with dental materials, particularly for endodontic applications, and will publish a book through ACerS–Wiley in fall 2025 that provides an expansive overview of everything she knows about ceramics in dentistry. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Glass is a solution to many modern challenges, and there remains ample opportunities for further improvements. William LaCourse, Emeritus Professor of glass science in the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, shares how several serendipitous encounters with giants in the glass field led to his employment at Alfred, highlights some of the untapped markets for ion-exchanged glass products, and gives some fun anecdotes from his time as the Alfred sports announcer for football and basketball. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest William LaCourse is Emeritus Professor of glass science in the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. He has conducted extensive research in the field of glass strengthening, with a current focus on ion-exchange processing of commercial soda-lime-silica glasses, as described in the May 2025 ACerS Bulletin. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Developing technologies with a deep impact in certain niche areas is arguably just as important as research that has a widespread impact. Joe Cesarano, founder and president of Robocasting Enterprises, explains how he helped develop a 3D ceramic printing method called robocasting at Sandia National Laboratories, provides examples of its applications, and shares tips on how to successfully bring your ideas to market. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Joe Cesarano is founder and president of Robocasting Enterprises in Albuquerque, N.M. The company uses a 3D printing method called robocasting to build different types of ceramic components. The method began as a research project at Sandia National Laboratories, as explained in this video, and Joe successfully transitioned that research into commercial application through his company. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

As we prepare for a future traveling the stars, energy-efficient processing technologies will be a necessity for both those in space and those remaining as Earth’s stewards. Holly Shulman, research professor at Alfred University, shares how she became interested in microwave sintering, describes its benefits compared to conventional sintering processes, and explains how it could support the development of future lunar colonies. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Holly Shulman is research professor at Alfred University and founder, president, and chief technology officer of Bluestar Advanced Manufacturing. She specializes in developing microwave processing technologies, and she was recently named director of the new Space Materials Institute at Alfred University in part due to the potential applications of her research on the moon. She will be giving a talk on microwave processing for lunar construction at the 59th Annual Microwave Power Symposium in June 2025, and she plans to teach an ACerS short course in the near future. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

The rapid advancement of technology has allowed people to more easily join with others in their research community and together support the search for the next big discovery in materials science. Monica Ferraris, full professor at Politecnico di Torino, shares details about her work on the joining and coating of materials, describes her involvement with the ACerS International Italy Chapter, and discusses her plans and goals as president of ACerS this year. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Monica Ferraris is full professor at Politecnico di Torino in Italy and cofounder of the university’s interdepartmental, multidisciplinary research center on advanced joining technologies. Her group studies the joining of similar and dissimilar materials as well as antibacterial and antiviral coatings. She is serving as this year’s president of The American Ceramic Society, and she previously helped cofound the ACerS International Italy Chapter along with Paolo Colombo. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Ceramic and glass manufacturing is a broad field that offers many opportunities for a fulfilling career. Tim Powers, retired engineering design lead at Owens Corning, shares his personal experiences working on some of the most well-known products produced by Corning and Owens Corning and describes how he is now supporting the next generation of the ceramic and glass workforce through the Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Tim Powers (retired) was the engineering design lead for glass furnace rebuilds in the Insulation Division at Owens Corning. Throughout his career at Corning and Owens Corning, he worked on some of the companies’ most well-known products, including catalytic converter substrates, Pyrex, and fiberglass insulation. He currently serves as chair-elect of the Ceramic and Glass Industry Foundation Board. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Breath and gas-based diagnostic tools have the potential to revolutionize medical monitoring and diagnosis. Perena Gouma, the Edward Orton Jr., Chair in ceramic engineering at The Ohio State University, describes how she became interested in this area of research, explains how electrospinning can be used to fabricate components for these devices, and shares her passion for educating students and the public about these discoveries. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Perena Gouma is the Edward Orton Jr., Chair in ceramic engineering at The Ohio State University. Her research involves using the nanomanufacturing technique of electrospinning to fabricate ceramics and composites for use in biomedical and environmental applications, including breath and other gas analysis devices. Recently, in collaboration with the Edward Orton Jr. Ceramic Foundation, her group developed a high-throughput electrospinning setup that opens the door to widespread use of this technique. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

Energy conversion technologies such as fuel cells and photocatalysts have great potential in the future of zero-carbon transportation. Scott Misture, Inamori Professor of materials science and engineering at Alfred University in New York, discusses the benefits and challenges of adopting this technology, describes how he uses diffraction techniques to study materials for energy conversion applications, and shares his thoughts on the personal and broader benefits of being involved in the materials science community. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Scott Misture is an Inamori Professor of materials science and engineering at Alfred University in New York. His research involves using diffraction techniques to study the dynamic behavior of ceramics and glasses related to energy conversion devices. He is currently chair of the International Center for Diffraction Data, a nonprofit scientific organization dedicated to collecting, editing, publishing, and distributing powder diffraction data for the identification of materials. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials.

We currently live in the Age of Plastics, but the recent push to produce and consume materials more sustainably means a new materials age is up for grabs. Trudy Kriven, the Donald Biggar Willett Professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, shares how her passion for research led her on a globetrotting adventure from Australia to Illinois, describes how she now focuses that passion on advancing the development of geopolymers, and explains how she transitions this technology into commercialization through her company Keanetech. View the transcript for this episode here. About the guest Trudy Kriven is the Donald Biggar Willett Professor of materials science and engineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Her research involves phase transformations in inorganic compounds and their applications in structural ceramic composites, geopolymers, and low-temperature synthesis of oxide ceramic powders. Since 2004, she has run a company called Keanetech to transition technologies her group developed at the university into commercialization. About ACerS Founded in 1898, The American Ceramic Society is the leading professional membership organization for scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators, and students working with ceramics and related materials. Update 10/03/2024 – Episode updated to better reflect historically accurate information.