Properties of High Temperature Sintered Clay Ceramic Added with Multi-Wire Sawn Granite Waste

Brazil is currently one of the world leading producers and exporters of ornamental stones. The increasing production also generates a proportionally huge amount of wastes. Depending on stones such as granite, these wastes may be composed of relatively high content of alkaline oxides. This is a low melting point flux with advantage for a potential addition of the waste into common clay ceramic. Thus, the present work investigated the addition of a granite waste, generated during the sawing stage using the multi-wire technology, into clayey ceramics fired at 1200oC. This ceramic added with up to 30 wt% waste were evaluated in terms of linear shrinkage, water absorption and flexural strength. It was found that the waste fluxing compounds promoted a reduction in water absorption and increase in strength that are associated with an improved clayey ceramic.