Even the strongest materials may have a limited range of applications if they are chemically soluble. Harsh chemicals are frequently used in factories; even water is corrosive to many common metals. In order to measure chemical resistance, several tests were conducted with Fine Ceramics and iron that had been soaked in
chemicals — including hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, nitric acid, sodium hydroxide and hydrofluoric acid. The results were analyzed, and materials that dissolved in relatively large quantities were determined to be more sensitive to chemicals.
Stainless steel dissolved in hydrochloric acid, and, similarly, stainless steel, zirconia and silicon nitride dissolved in hydrofluoric acid, all exhibit high levels of solubility. Alumina and silicon carbide displayed resistance to all of the chemicals in the tests. Alumina and silicon carbide are substances which possess particularly high levels of resistance to chemicals (low chemical solubility).
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