US Patent 8088697 Fibrous ceramic material and method for making the same

A fibrous ceramic material including a plurality of fibers entangled with one another. The fibrous ceramic material includes at least one connector projecting between the fibers. At least a portion of the fibers have the connectors extending between and attach the fibers to one another. A method of manufacturing the fibrous ceramic material includes providing a precursor material having a plurality of fibers. A holder is provided for holding the precursor material. The precursor material is placed on the holder and both are heated to between about 1500 degrees Celsius and about 1700 degrees Celsius to form the fibrous ceramic material, thereby causing connectors to project from a portion of the fibers and attach the fibers to one another.