With continued discoveries and innovations, the field of materials synthesis and processing remains as it has been for many decades, a vibrant and fertile area for research and development. It comes, therefore, as no surprise that every Pac Rim conference has had considerable emphasis on this topic with many symposia devoted to various aspects of this field.  This Ceramic Transactions volume represents selected papers based on presentations in four symposia during the 8th Pacific Rim Conference on Ceramic and Glass Technology, held in Vancouver, British Columbia, May 31-June 5, 2009.