Devoted to the role of chemical synthetic techniques in the development of advanced ceramic materials, this is the first book to bridge the gap between existing volumes concerned with properties of ceramic materials, such as mechanical properties, and those on chemistry. The author describes the variety of advanced ceramics and their conventional synthesis and fabrication. This is followed by a description of the range of nonconventional synthetic methods. The basic chemistry of the synthesis is described and well illustrated by reference to ceramics made on both laboratory and industrial scales.