About IRCER
Work at the Institute of Research for Ceramics – IRCER – is devoted to the transformations of matter involved in processing of bulk ceramics and processing used in surface treatment. The laboratory activities are situating at
the intersection of materials science – mostly ceramics – and process engineering.
Research and innovation in ceramics
Implanted in the new aquitaine region at Limoges, the birthplace of the ceramic industry in France, the IRCER makes the link between tradition and modernity with its pursuit of innovation in the development of highly technical ceramics which answer the new challenges of industry and society (energy, information and communication technologies, health, ecomaterials…). The IRCER houses in a single building of 8500 m2, called the “Centre Européen de la Céramique”, all 200 members of the laboratory as well as the scientific equipment.
Internationally recognized, the institute brings together teams of CNRS scientists, academics of the University of Limoges specialized in chemistry, physics and mechanics of ceramic based materials, physics of plasma processing as well as engineers, technicians and administrative staff.
The interdisciplinary approach
An interdisciplinary approach between materials science and process engineering based on both basic and applied research is adopted to understand, characterize,
master and model the different processes which are employed to make a ceramic object or coating with tailored properties for a specific application.
This approach brings together, in 4 complementary research divisions, teams of CNRS scientists and University academics originating from different scientific backgrounds (chemistry, physics, mechanical engineering).
AXIS 1 - Innovative ceramic processes
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AXIS 2 - Plasma and laser processes
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AXIS 3 - Multiscale structural organization of materials
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AXIS 4 - Ceramics under environmental stresses
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Development of innovative ceramics
It means having to control the arrangement of entities at the atomic scale right up to the scale of the macroscopic object in order to generate new or improved properties. This is the case for both crystalline and non-crystalline solids. Characterization of the material organization at different scales requires analytical tools with very high resolution. In most cases we use these tools in combination with numerical simulation and synthesis of model (nano) materials in order to establish the relations between structure, microstructure and properties.
Development of innovative processes
This priority aim of the IRCER, requires understanding of the basic mechanisms involved in forming bulk ceramics or coatings as well as their consolidation. Thus improved properties for specific applications can be achieved. The panoply of processing methods under study is very wide and all of them are potential candidates for hybrid processing routes: physical deposition by plasma or laser, sol-gel synthesis route, digital printing in 2D/3D, non conventional sintering methods…
The logical « material + processing = products »
It implies, for structural ceramics just as well as for functional ceramics, numerous collaborations with industrial actors concerned by the production of parts or components. Other collaborations involve developers of technologies using these materials (energy, information and communication technologies, health, mechanical engineering, transport, transformation of raw materials).
A broad range of equipment
They are available to make and characterize the materials at different scales in order to study the chemistry and physical properties relevant to the specific application in view. This is a key point in the strategy of the basic research themes of the IRCER. Other projects involving national and international partnerships, stimulated by the perspectives of industrial exploitation, also benefit by this highly performant and dedicated technical support.
Our historical background
First structuring of a research team
It is dedicated to ceramics, with the creation of a CNRS Associated Research Team (ERA 539) resulting from the merger of a “plasma” team and a “nitride-type ceramics” team.
Creation of the "Laboratoire des Céramiques Nouvelles (LCN - LA 320)"
The laboratory is organized into 4 research teams: Nitride Ceramics, Thermodynamics and Plasma, Structures and Properties, Ceramic Materials. The LCN integrates all materials research carried out in Limoges by 2 higher education establishments: the University of Limoges and the ENSCI.
Evolving and expanding our research vocation
The laboratory becomes “Matériaux Céramiques et Traitements de Surface” (LMCTS - URA320).
Creation of a new laboratory
Creation of the “Science des Procédés Céramiques et de Traitements de Surface” laboratory (SPCTS UMR6638, currently UMR7315), at the same time as setting up the “Groupe d'Etude des Matériaux Hétérogènes” (GEMH, recognized as an EA3178 Equipe d'Accueil in 2000) at ENSCI.
Relocation of SPCTS and GEMH activities
In a single building, the Centre Européen de la Céramique (CEC), located on the ESTER Technopole site in Limoges.
∑-LIM Laboratory of Excellence
Winner of an eight-year investment in the future. This is an academic research project between the SPCTS laboratory and the XLIM research institute.
Integration of GEMH into SPCTS
Laboratory name change
SPCTS becomes IRCER.