Ceramic knives
I was introduced to these special knives in one of Ming Chai’s TV shows in Food Network. I was intrigued by the white knife that Ming handled so gracefully that could cut with precision. No other chefs in the Network used the same kind of knife. It turns out that Ming was using a ceramic knife. Ceramic knives are made of very hard ceramic, often zirconia. If hardened steel ranks 6.5 in the scale of mineral hardness and diamond ranks 10, zirconia ranks 8.5.
Ceramic knives are very hard and therefore can retain their cutting edge longer. They make a great culinary tool for slicing and cutting but they are also very brittle. They should never be used for chopping or cutting into bones and frozen meat. They have other qualities that make them useful in other ways. Because they will not rust, ceramic knives are useful to SCUBA divers. They are also nonconductive and nonmagnetic making them useful in bomb disposal operations.