Monthly Tech-Tip | No tracking! No ads! |
Yes, the granular and powdered grades or pure rutile are the same material. But grinding it is very difficult. Commercial ceramic grade powder is minus 325 mesh, the companies doing this obviously have very good grinding equipment. They also have patience because even in this efficient porcelain ball mill, 90 minutes was only enough to get 50% to minus 325 mesh! The color of the powder is a good indication of its quality, the finer the grind the lighter tan it will be.
Left: GA6-C rutile blue glaze on a brown stoneware. The 4% ceramic rutile powder gives the blue variegated effect. Right: We ball-milled our granular rutile and then screened it down to 325 mesh and put that into the same glaze. The results are the same. So if any of your rutile glazes ever lose this effect with a new supply of the material the cause could be that it has not been milled sufficiently fine. Finer rutile powders are browner in color.
Materials |
Granular Rutile
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Materials |
Ceramic Rutile
Rutile mineral ground to a very fine particle size (e.g. 325 mesh) contributes titanium and iron that colors and variegates ceramic glazes. |
Glossary |
Ball milling
A method of grinding particles in ceramic powders and slurries. A porcelain, metal or rubber vessel filled with pebbles tumbles and particles are ground between colliding pebbles. |
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