Development and Characterization of Parian Bodies Using Feldspar from Two Selected Deposits in Nigeria

Abstract

Self glazed bodies also called Parian Bodies are chiefly composed of Feldspar which majorly acts as flux in reducing the melting temperature of the particular ceramic body thereby reducing the stress of double firing a ceramic product. In this present research work, Okpella and Ijero-Ekiti feldspar deposits in Nigeria together with other raw materials were utilized to develop parian bodies which are very suitable for making ceramic tiles, dolls and figurines. Chemical analyses were carried out on the raw materials using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) in order to ascertain their suitability for developing parian bodies. Six compositions were made from these two deposits using a standard parian body composition of 70% feldspar. The samples were shaped, dried and sintered between 1050 o C -1250 o C at the interval of 50 0 C. Flexural strength, fired shrinkage, porosity and water absorption tests were used to characterize the samples. The results showed that samples fired at 1200 0 C and 1250 0 C exhibited technological properties that meet up with ISO standards. The two feldspar deposits were found to be suitable for developing parian bodies.

Effect of Firing Temperature on some Mechanical Properties of Osun State Ceramic Tiles

“…Meanwhile, Chukwudi et al (2012) described 20 MPa to 35 MPa as the flexural strength for normal floor tiles irrespective of its thickness though it recorded a much higher flexural strength of between 25 MPa to 59 MPa in its study after adding different percentages of steel slag to the mixture of clay, feldspar, and silica sand material. Ogundare et al (2015) recorded a similarly high flexural strength ranging from 21 MPa to 54 MPa. El-Nouhy (2013) alighted between 13.6 N/mm 2 and 24.79 N/mm 2 as the flexural strength for the 14 different ceramic tile samples produced and collected from Egypt.…”