FIRING OF CERAMIC MATERIAL

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To shorten a firing time by carrying out an oxygen-enriched combustion by feeding oxygen into a furnace having a temperature in the firing furnace not less than a specific value and within an adequate temperature range. SOLUTION: The oxygen-enriched combustion is carried out at the temperature in the firing furnace preferably within an adequate range not less than 800 deg.C, especially within the range of 1,100-1,600 deg.C. The oxygen concentration in the air for the combustion is preferably 21-27%. The amount of the enriched oxygen fed to the air for combustion is regulated by measuring the oxygen concentration by a measuring instrument 19 formed in an air conduit for the combustion on this side of a burner, manually or automatically operating a valve 18 to control the base pressure of a liquid oxygen bomb. On the other hand, because the combustion amount is required to be increased by the amount of the fed oxygen (the enriched amount), the pipe line at the upstream side of an air valve in the air piping route at the vicinity of the burner is connected with a pipe line of a governor 6 for controlling the fuel to automatically control the combustion amount by measuring the differential pressure thereof. The firing time can be shortened by the oxygen-enriching combustion method compared to an air combustion method, and the fuel is saved when firing a ceramic material.