Influence of firing temperature on the physical, thermal and microstructural properties of kankara kaolin clay: A preliminary investigation
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
In this study, natural deposits of Kankara kaolin clay were collected and investigated in order to determine physical, microstructural, thermal, and firing properties and assess clay’s suitability as starting material for various ceramic applications. Chemical analysis of the clay was performed using XRF. Mineralogical analysis and thermal analysis of the clay were conducted using XRD and thermogravimetric thermal analysis (TGA)/differential thermal analysis (DTA), respectively. In order to assess its ceramic behavior, the clay was fired at 900–1200 °C. Maturation characteristics of fired ceramics were assessed by measuring bulk density, apparent porosity, and shrinkage. It was found that main oxides in the clay are alumina, silica, and potassium oxide, while other oxides are present in trace quantities. Kaolinite, quartz, and illite are the phases found from the XRD results, while mullite ceramic phase formed at firing temperature above 1100 °C. Maturation tests showed that ceramic properties such as bulk density and shrinkage increase with temperature, while apparent porosity decreases with temperature. The results presented in this study prove that the clay is an appropriate material for producing traditional ceramics.
Date Issued
2020-04-16
Date Acceptance
2020-04-14
Citation
Materials, 2020, 13 (8)
ISSN
1996-1944
Publisher
MDPI
Journal / Book Title
Materials
Volume
13
Issue
8
Copyright Statement
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access
article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution
(CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution
(CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Subjects
Kancara kaolin clay
density
firing
mullite ceramics
porosity
shrinkage
03 Chemical Sciences
09 Engineering
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
1872
Date Publish Online
2020-04-16