Abstract
Properties of ceramics materials are closely related to the initial characteristics of the raw materials and also to the conditions and parameters of the processing. In this context, this study aimed to evaluate the influence of clays characteristics and their interaction with the processing variables on technological properties of fired specimens. Clays from the states of Pernambuco and Paraíba were used in this work. Clays were processed and then subjected to characterization tests. The specimens were produced by pressing and extrusion, dried at 110 °C and then subjected to firing at temperatures of 800, 900, 1000, 1100 and 1200 °C, with heating rate of 5 °C/min and firing time of 60 and 180 min. Then, the technological properties (linear firing shrinkage, water absorption, and three-point flexural strength) and the phases produced under the different thermal treatments were analyzed. It was concluded that the interaction of particle size, mineralogical and chemical characteristics, as well as the processing parameters, especially the forming method, were determinants to the technological properties of ceramic bodies.
Keywords:
clays; processing parameters; technological properties
