Zirconia-based ceramics are used in many engineering applications but they fail when exposed to moisture at 100 300oC. Overcome this and major new markets open up in the medical and petrochemical industries amongst many others. Results obtained by Loughborough University indicate this can be achieved by producing nanostructured zirconia.The science is now largely understood so the task is to scale up the manufacture of these materials to prototype level and transfer the technology into industry. Three industrial partners, including a nanopowder producer, a ceramic manufacturer and a control valve manufacturer, will work with Loughborough to achieve this.