Usually they are metal oxides that is compounds of metallic elements and oxygen but many ceramics especially advanced ceramics are compounds of metallic elements and carbon nitrogen or sulfur.
Ceramics like oxides are formed.
Alumina is readily extracted from the ore known as bauxite and zirconia is produced from the mineral known as zircon.
Zirconia ceramics are less brittle than other ceramics so they re commonly used for ceramic knives.
Because oxide ceramics are not always well suited to use in extreme environments or as a replacement in applications required to bear significant loads ceramic non oxides respond to this need.
Some elements such as carbon or silicon maybe considered ceramics ceramic materials are brittle hard strong in compression and weak in shearing and tension.
Materials decompose when glazes melt sourcing these elements in oxide form.
In atomic structure they are most often crystalline although they also may contain a combination of glassy and crystalline phases.
The most frequently used metal oxide ceramics are alumina al 2 o 3 and zirconia zro 2.
They withstand chemical erosion that occurs in other materials subjected to acidic or caustic environments.
Ceramic oxide periodic table all common traditional ceramic base glazes are made from only a dozen elements plus oxygen.