Surface Abrasion of Glazed Ceramic Tiles: A New Investigation Technique (original) (raw)

Deep Abrasion Resistance of Porcelain Tiles

In this study, resistance of porcelain stoneware tiles to deep abrasion was investigated. Chemical, physical and microstructural analyses were accomplished in order to determine the relationship between the abrasion resistance and technical characteristics of commercially available tiles. The specimens were characterized by Vickers Microhardness (VHN), X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The statistical nature in measurements of technical features for porcelain tiles made it difficult to well determine a correlation between abrasion resistance and other physical/chemical characteristics. It seems that by increasing the mean pore size, the abrasion resistance decreases. XRD analysis revealed that the abrasion resistances of the samples in which the amorphous phase was dominant, were greater than of those with lower content of glass phase or higher amount of non-melted Na-feldspar. It seems that glass phase relieves residual stresses during firing and enhances interfacial cohesion between quartz particles and amorphous matrix, reducing material removal during abrasion.

Ceramic Surface Treatment and Abrasion Resistance: An Experimental Study

Journal of Archaeological Science, 1997

This study explores experimentally the relationship between pottery surface treatments (texture, slip/polish, resin, smooth, and smudge) and abrasion resistance. The surface treatments were applied to low-fired ceramic spheres and then abrasion resistance was measured by weight loss as the specimens were abraded in lapidary tumblers. In terms of total weight loss, slip/polished and textured spheres had the poorest abrasion resistance overall whereas smudged and resin-coated surface treatments provided the best. These results have implications for pottery performance in use, use-wear analysis, and the environmental degradation of pottery. Of particular note is that a resin coating, which is the best surface treatment in terms of abrasion resistance as well as several other performance characteristics, is often applied to pots investigated ethnographically, but it rarely observed on prehistoric ceramics because of biodegradation.

Relationship between Surface AbrasionWear and Brightness in Glazed Porcelainized Stoneware Tiles

This paper reports the results of a research work whose main objective is related to the development of a technical solution that takes into account the relationship between the surface abrasion wear resistance and brightness of glazed ceramic tile products. Thus, glazes formulated from a glass-ceramic composition belonging to the LZSA system reinforced with crystalline particles of zircon were prepared and characterized with respect to their scratching and surface abrasion wear resistances and brightness. In this context, a bright (71.2 UB) porcelainized stoneware ceramic tile with high scratching resistance (9 Mohs), high surface abrasion wear resistance (PEI 5), and good staining resistance (Class 4) was obtained.

A Provisional Theory of Ceramic Abrasion

American Anthropologist, 1989

This article calls attention to ceramic abrasion as a class of traces that can be employed by the archeologist in a variety of behavioral studies. Basic principles of ceramic abrasion are set forth, built upon the engineering literature and on experiments undertaken in the Laboratory of Traditional Technology. Abrasion mechanism are discussed, but the limitations of current knowledge are underscored. The major factors pertaining to ceramic, abrader, and contact situations that in$uence the rate and nature of abrasion are identajed. MAJOR TREND I N ARCHEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS during the past several decades has A been the recognition and exploitation of new lines of evidence for inferring past human behavior and environmental conditions. Experimentation often plays a crucial role in validating new lines of evidence; recall, for example, the many hundreds of experiments required to establish the relationships between lithic polish types and worked materials (Keeley 1980; Vaughan 1985). This article calls attention to ceramic abrasion, a family of common traces that so far has been little studied. In order to lay a foundation for the use of these traces in inference, we have been investigating ceramic abrasion experimentally. Building upon our experimental results and recent studies in engineering, this article proposes a provisional theory of ceramic abrasion. Knowledge of the factors influencing abrasion rates and the formation of abrasion traces can contribute to three areas of archeological inquiry. First, an understanding of the technical choices that influence abrasion resistance, such as firing temperature and surface treatment, can help investigators to determine if-and how-pots in specific technological traditions were designed for good abrasion resistance. Second, abrasions or scratches comprise an abundant type of wear; thus, an appreciation for the conditions that cause abrasive wear and the factors that lead to differences in abrasion patterns can enhance ceramic use-wear analysis (cf. Bray 1982; Griffiths 1978; Hally 1983; Schiffer 1989). Third, because a host of processes from trampling to fluvial transport abrade ceramics, an experimentally grounded theory of abrasion can contribute to fine-grained identification of formation processes (cf. Schiffer 1987). Basic Concepts and Principles Abrasions and Abrasive Processes Two interrelated phenomena are of interest here: (1) abrasions, as a category of traces, and (2) abrasive processes, the activities of people and nature that produce abrasions. For present purposes, an abrasion is defined broadly as a trace that was formed by removal or deformation of material on a ceramic's surface by mechanical contact, specifically, the sliding, scraping, or, in some cases, striking action of an abrader (i.e., a particle, object, or surface). The abrader can also include particles entrained in a fluid such

Non destructive evaluation of glaze delaminations in glazed ceramic tiles: laboratory tests

Glazed ceramic tile panels, azulejos, is a very distinctive character of the extraordinarily rich heritage of Portugal. Particular attention is therefore required to study the causes of the decay process, the progress of its effects, and the definition of suitable procedures concerning the conservation practice. Issues related to the presence of glaze delamination are taken into account, attempting to find some possible solutions to the early detection of sub-surface air cavities. In the present paper the basic approach for an extensive laboratory validation of two non contact techniques employing an acoustic excitation source is presented. Using the same acoustic excitation source, an innovative highly directive loudspeaker, the tests provided the velocity of the induced vibrations in a collection of samples by means of a Laser Doppler Vibrometer, correlated to the presence of acoustic energy absorption revealed by means of the Acoustic Absorption diagnostic system. This study comp...

Evolution of Wear on the Abrasive Tool during the Polishing of Porcelain Tile Using Morphological Space

Advanced Materials Research, 2014

Costs with the polishing process represent nearly a third of what costumers pay for polished floor tiles. This is in part due to the high consumption of cemented-matrix abrasive tools, whose demand is about half kilogram per square meter final product. The present study addresses the wear of such abrasive tools, colloquially known as fickerts in the industrial polishing process of ceramic tiles. The focus was set on the evolution of the fickert´s surface during polishing. The fickert´s topography was periodically measured by both optical and confocal microscopy. The abrasive tool was submitted to a sequence of ten polishing steps of one second each. All variations were quantitatively characterized and were successfully represented by means of the morphological space. Such space is in turn composed by two statistical parameters: the skewness and kurtosis, both based on the distribution of heights collected from roughness profiles taken along the fickert´s active surface. The experimental points showed a linear relationship between skewness and kurtosis, in a very good accordance with the behavior expected for typical abrasive wear.

Surface Properties of Porcelain Stoneware Tiles: The Influence of Different Protective Coatings

In the last few years the demand of porcelain stoneware tiles, having even more improved aesthetic appearance, became very important, so that different product typologies, in terms of bulk and surface properties, came out. In particular, polishing process, which provides smooth and highly glossy surfaces compared to the as-fired ones, gives the product a very high aesthetic value. The industrial polishing process, however, causes the formation of superficial defects and inhomogeneities, leading to a worsening of product performances in working conditions. The aim of this work was to emphasize the role played by different chemical coatings on the surface microstructural features of different product typologies, through the investigation of their behaviour in terms of stain resistance and service life.

Contact pressure distribution during the polishing process of ceramic tiles: A laboratory investigation

IOP conference series, 2016

During the polishing process of porcelain tiles the difference in scratching speed between innermost and peripheral abrasives leads to pressure gradients linearly distributed along the radial direction of the abrasive tool. The aim of this paper is to investigate such pressure gradient in laboratory scale. For this purpose polishing tests were performed on ceramic tiles according to the industrial practices using a custom-made CNC tribometer. Gradual wear on both abrasives and machined surface of the floor tile were measured. The experimental results suggested that the pressure gradient tends to cause an inclination of the abraded surfaces, which becomes stable after a given polishing period. In addition to the wear depth of the machined surface, the highest value of gloss and finest surface finish were observed at the lowest point of the worn out surface of the ceramic floor tile corresponding to the point of highest pressure and lowest scratching speed.

The effects of water on processes of ceramic abrasion

Journal of Archaeological Science, 1987

The effect of wet and dry abrasive processes were studied experimentally in order to provide information relevant to studies of ceramic technofunction, use-wear, and noncultural formation processes. Briquettes of different paste compositions (untempered, fine-sand tempered, coarse-sand tempered) were subjected to tumbling tests using sand, pea gravel, and large gravel abraders in wet and dry modes. Abrasion resistance was indicated by weight loss after 4 h of tumbling; micro-and macroscopic differences in the traces of various abrasive processes were also documented. In every case, wet conditions cause an increase in the rate of abrasion. Explanations are offered for the observed patterns and some implications are drawn for archaeological studies.