Ceramic ball

These balls can be made from either Alumina Oxide, Zirconia Oxide or Silicon Nitride and have several advantages over their steel equivalents. They're 40% less dense than steel, have a 29% lower thermal expansion (so they hold their shape better when the temperature changes) and are 150% harder. Benefits Lightweight, hard and tough, with a low mass, these balls are particularly suited to environments which demand arduous, high speed bearing applications, for example machine tool spindles and vacuum pumps. Because they're so hard this reduces the amount of friction present and thus more of the energy is converted to work, making them more efficient; in some high-speed applications ceramic balls can last 100 times longer than steel. They're also inert (chemically inactive) to most substances, so they offer excellent corrosion resistance. Use You'll find these used in the automotive and aviation industries (their durability and light weight makes them perfect for use in aircraft braking assemblies for example) and they're often found in many of the items that once used more traditional metal balls, like aerosol paint cans, all manner of joints and slides (like car seats and safety restraints) as well as castors, ball transfer units, quick disconnect couplings and various kinds of fasteners.