Sintering and dielectric properties of a technical porcelain prepared from economical natural raw materials

In this study, the production of a technical porcelain, for the ceramic dielectric applications by using economical natural raw materials, was investigated. The basic porcelain composition was selected consisting of 30 wt% kaolin, 45 wt% potash-feldspar and 25 wt% quartz. The obtained phases in the sintered samples were investigated by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy analysis, and scanning electron microscopy images. It has been confirmed by these techniques that the main crystalline phases were quartz and mullite. Dielectric measurements of technical porcelains have been carried out at 1 kHz from room temperature to 200 °C. The dielectric constant, loss factor, dielectric loss tangent, and resistivity of the porcelain sample sintered at 1160 °C were 22-25, 0.32-1.80, 0.006-0.07, and 0.2-9 x 1013 Ω.cm, respectively. The value of dielectric constant was significantly high when compared to that of conventional porcelains which did not exceed generally 9.

The Influence of Microstructure, Temperature and Sintering Level on Electric Properties of Electrical Insulators Obtained from Raw Materials of Rio Grande do Norte - Brazil

The technical porcelain is usually obtained by mixing different raw materials, which are generally clay, kaolin, quartz, and a fluxing agent, in appropriate amounts. These porcelains are used in the production of electric and electronic devices for several applications, ranging from high and low power capacitors to low, medium, high and extra high voltage insulators. In this work, we studied technological properties of dielectric porcelain, obtained from raw materials found in large quantities and excellent quality in the Rio Grande do Norte state in Brazil. Test samples were produced by powder technology for two different compositions: composition A (20% clay, 28% kaolin, 32% feldspar and 20% quartz) and composition B (15% clay, 31% kaolin, 33% feldspar and 21% quartz), and sintered at temperatures, T1=1150°C, T2=1200°C, T3=1250°C, T4=1300°C and T5=1350°C with isotherms P1=0.5 hours, P2=1 hour, P3=1.5 hours and P4=2 hours. Then after sintered, the sample microstructure was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and analysis of dielectric strength with direct and alternating voltage. The best results for electrical properties were obtained in temperature of 1250oC for composition A, and confirms the electrotechnical porcelain production feasibility.