Grits are materials widely used in the ceramic tile industry because they give the tile properties such as resistance to abrasion, scratch and slippage, as well as texture effects. Sodium alginate is a polysaccharide found both in the intercellular matrix of brown algae and in some species of bacteria. Due to its stabilizing, thickening and gelling properties, alginate is widely used industrially. In this work sodium alginate was evaluated regarding the action of promoting the gelation of a ceramic suspension generating ceramic grits. The variables involved in obtaining the grits were source and concentration of sodium alginate, and calcium chloride concentration. The grits were applied on tiles and fired in roller oven. The results showed that the mechanical strength of the granules is affected by the source and concentration of sodium alginate and calcium chloride concentration. Optical microscopy images carried out in tiles showed that there is a relationship between the average size and area of pores with a source of sodium alginate.
ceramic grits; sodium alginate; gelation
