CERAMICS

The word ceramics comes from a Greek word “keramos” that means “potters clay”.
The other name commonly used in place of ceramics is “pottery”.
Ceramics refers to the art and knowledge technique of producing clay objects which are
fired in a kiln to turn them into a hard, brittle material.
The word ceramic comes from the Greek word “(keramikos), “of pottery” or “for pottery”,
from (keramos), “potter’s clay, tile, pottery” which is said to derive from the Indo-
European word *cheros (unattested), meaning heat. The earliest mention on the word
“ceramic” is the Mycenaean Greek ke-ra-me-we, “workers of ceramics”, written in Linear
b syllabic script. Ceramic may be used as an adjective describing a material, product or
process; or as a singular noun, or, more commonly, as a plural noun, ceramics.

DESIGNING CERAMIC PRODUCTS.

The elements and principles of Art and Design apply in the designing of ceramic products.
When designing a two-dimensional piece, it is imperative to consider: -
1) Function
2) Type of clays
3) Decoration
4) Glazes
5) Kilns

Function
If a ceramic was to be used for storing liquids, then it needs to be fired and glazed.
Ceramic wares for oven use must be capable of withstanding high temperatures.
Types of clay.
Clay is the primary material in ceramics. Clays are classified as:
➢ Residual (primary).
➢ Sedimentary (secondary).

Residual clays are found near the original rock source.

Sedimentary clays are those that have been carried from their original source by water,
erosion, and wind.

Clay is a complex chemical compound which involves molecules of aluminium (Al), silicon
(Si), Oxygen (O₂), And hydroxyl groups (OH).
Clay is hence referred to Al₂Si₂O₅(OH)₄.

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Clay is a refractory material which is capable of withstanding high temperatures without
fusion or decomposition.
DECOMPOSITION OF CLAY.
The first decomposition of clay occurs when the parent rock granite is broken down by
borun (which occurs in borax) and fluoride (salt of hydrofluoric acid) into feldspar, quartz,
and mica.
The feldspar is subsequently decomposed by carbon dioxide and water into: -
➢ Pure clay (kaolinite)
➢ Quartz
➢ Potash
Kaolinite clay are basically porcelain clays and highly fired clays which are not highly
plastic.
Secondary kaolinite clays are further decomposed by carbon dioxide and water and carried
away from their original source.
There are many types of clays, each of which contains various substances which give clay
their particular characteristics. The most important characteristic of clay is its firing
temperatures.

TYPES OF CLAYS
1) Earthenware
2) Stoneware
3) Porcelain
4) Talc
5) Kaolin
6) Ball
7) Shale
8) Fire clays.

Earthenware clay.
Earthenware clays are porous, non-waterproof, opaque and do not fire above a certain
temperature.
They are known as low-fire clays because they usually fire between 1050°c And 1200°c.
Above 1200°c, earthenware clays deform.

Earthenware is a common ceramic material, which is used extensively for pottery

tableware and decorative objects. Although body formulations vary between countries and
even between individual makers, a generic composition is 25% ball clay, 28% kaolin, 32%
quartz, and 15% feldspar. Earthenware is one of the oldest materials used in pottery.
While red earthenware made from red clays is very familiar and recognizable, white and
buff colored earthenware clays are also commercially available and commonly used.
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Earthenware may sometimes be as thin as bone china and other porcelains, though it is
not translucent and is more easily chipped. It is also less strong, less tough, and more
porous than stoneware, but is less expensive and easier to work. Due to its higher porosity,
earthenware must usually be glazed in order to be watertight.

Stoneware clay
Stoneware clays are sedimentary clays which fire above 1200°c. They vitrify (to convert
into a glassy material) and are able to hold water even when not glazed.
When a glaze is applied on stoneware, the two materials mature at the same temperature
to form an integrated glaze fit.
Five categories of stoneware are: -
Traditional stoneware- a dense and inexpensive body. It is opaque, can be of any colour
and breaks with a conchoidal or stony fracture. Traditionally made of fine-grained
secondary, plastic clays which can used to shape very large pieces.
Fine stoneware- made from more carefully selected, prepared and blended raw materials.
It is used to produce tableware and art ware.
Chemical stoneware- used in the chemical industry, and elsewhere when resistance to
chemical attack is needed. Purer raw materials are used than for other stoneware
bodies. Ali Baba is a popular name for a large chemical stoneware jar of up to 5,000
litres capacity used to store acids.
Thermal shock resistant stoneware– has additions of certain materials to enhance the
thermal shock resistance of the fired body.
Electrical stoneware- historically has been used for electrical insulators, although has
been replaced by electrical porcelain.
PORCELAIN.
Porcelain clay is also called kaolin or china clay. The word is derived from the French
word porcelain which means cowrie shell because of their similarity in colour.
Porcelain clay contains about 50% china clay and about 25% feldspar and 25% silica.
Porcelain which is used in hand-building materials contains: porcelain grog, or iron free
silica. The famous “bone china”, is made up of roughly 45% bone ash, 30% china clay, and
25% flux.
Bone ash contains calcium, phosphate, calcium carbonate, and other substances.
Most porcelain clays fire from 1260°c to 1465°c. When fired, porcelain has a creamy,
whitish, translucent effect.
Good quality porcelain ware is very expensive, and it is usually white and translucent.
Glazing- Unlike their lower-fired counterparts, porcelain wares do not need glazing to
render them impermeable to liquids and for the most part are glazed for decorative
purposes and to make them resistant to dirt and staining. Great detail is given in the glaze

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article. Many types of glazes, such as the iron-containing glaze used on the celadon wares
of Long Quan, were designed specifically for their striking effects on porcelain.

Decoration- Porcelain wares may be decorated under the glaze using pigments that
include cobalt and copper or over the glaze using coloured enamels. Like many earlier
wares, modern porcelains are often bisque-fired at around 1,000 degrees Celsius, coated
with glaze and then sent for a second glaze-firing at a temperature of about 1,300 degrees
Celsius or greater. Another early method is once-fired where the glaze is applied to the
unfired body and the two fired together in a single operation.

Firing. In this process, green (unfired) ceramic wares are heated to high temperatures
in a kiln to permanently set their shapes. Porcelain is fired at a higher temperature than
earthenware so that the body can vitrify and become non-porous.
Categories of porcelain
Porcelain can be divided into the three main categories: hard-paste, soft-paste, and bone,
depending on the composition of the paste, the material used to form the body of a porcelain
object.

Hard paste
Some of the earliest European porcelains were produced at the Meissen factory in the
early 18th century; they were formed from a paste composed of kaolinite, quartz, and
alabaster and fired at temperatures in excess of 1,350 °C (2,462 °F), producing a
porcelain of great hardness and strength. Later, the composition of the Meissen hard
paste was changed and the alabaster was replaced by feldspar, allowing the pieces to be
fired at lower temperatures. Kaolinite, feldspar and quartz (or other forms of silica)
continue to provide the basic ingredients for most continental European hard-paste
porcelains.
Soft paste
Its history dates from the early attempts by European potters to replicate Chinese porcelain
by using mixtures of china clay and ground-up glass or frit; soapstone and lime were known
to have also been included in some compositions. As these early formulations suffered from
high pyro plastic deformation, or slumping in the kiln at raised temperature, they were
uneconomic to produce. Formulations were later developed based on kaolin, quartz,
feldspars, nepheline syenite and other feldspathic rocks. These were technically superior
and continue in production.

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Bone china
Although originally developed in England to compete with imported porcelain, Bone china
is now made worldwide. For whatever reason, when it was first tried it was found that
adding bone-ash to the paste produced a white, strong, translucent porcelain.
Traditionally English bone china was made from two parts of bone-ash, one part of china
clay kaolin and one part china stone (a feldspathic rock), although this has largely been
replaced by feldspars from non-UK sources.
TALC CLAY
Talc clays contain magnesium silicate, also known as chalk, steatite, or soapstone. The
chemical formula for talc is Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂.
The magnesia acts as a flux (fusing agent) at high temperatures. In low temperatures talc
increases the thermal expansion of clay bodies.
Colours of talc clay includes: white, grey, green, blue, or silver.

Talc (derived from the Persian talc via Arabic talk) is a mineral composed of hydrated
magnesium silicate with the chemical formula H₂Mg₃(SiO₃) ₄ Or Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂. In
loose form, it is the widely-used substance known as talcum powder. It occurs as foliated
to fibrous masses, its monoclinic crystals being so rare as to be almost unknown. It has a
perfect basal cleavage, and the folia are non-elastic, although slightly flexible. It is very
soft and sectile (can be cut with a knife); as the defining mineral for the value of 1 on
Mohs hardness, it can be easily scratched by a fingernail. It has a specific gravity of 2.5–
2.8, a clear or dusty luster, and is translucent to opaque. Talc is not soluble in water, but it
is slightly soluble in dilute mineral acids. Its colour ranges from white to grey or green and
it has a distinctly greasy feel. Its streak is white.
Soapstone is a metamorphic rock composed predominantly of talc.
Formation of Talc
Talc is a metamorphic mineral resulting from the metamorphism of magnesian minerals
such as serpentine, pyroxene, amphibole, olivine, in the presence of carbon dioxide and
water. This is known as talc carbonation or steatization and produces a suite of rocks known
as talc carbonates.
Talc is primarily formed via hydration and carbonation of serpentine, via the following
reaction; -
Serpentine + carbon dioxide —> talc + magnesite + water
2Mg₃Si₂O₅(OH)₄ + 3CO₂ —> Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂ + 3 MgCO₃ + 3 H₂O
Talc can also be formed via a reaction between dolomite and silica, which is typical of
skarnification of dolomites via silica-flooding in contact metamorphic aureoles;

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KAOLIN CLAY.
Kaolin clays are pure residual clays. They have low plasticity and a high degree of
resistance to heat. Kaolin is the same as china clay.
The chemical formula for kaolin is Al₂Si₂O₅(OH)₄.
Identification colours are: White, sometimes red, blue or brown tints from impurities.
Kaolinite is a clay mineral, part of the group of industrial minerals, with the chemical
composition Al₂Si₂O₅(OH)₄. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet
linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral sheet of alumina octahedra. Rocks that
are rich in kaolinite are known as china clay, white clay, or kaolin.
Uses of Kaolin
Kaolin is used in ceramics, medicine, coated paper, as a food additive, in toothpaste, as a
light diffusing material in white incandescent light bulbs, and in cosmetics. It is generally the
main component in porcelain.
It is also used in paint to extend titanium dioxide (TiO₂) And modify gloss levels; in rubber
for semi-reinforcing properties; and in adhesives to modify rheology.
Kaolin was long used in the production of common smoking pipes in Europe and Asia.
BALL CLAY.
Ball clay is very plastic. It is used to blend with clays which have low plasticity. Because of
its degree of plasticity, ball clay cannot be used alone for forming pots because the forms
would collapse.
Ball clays are kaolinitic sedimentary clays, that commonly consist of 20-80% kaolinite, 10-
25% mica, 6-65% quartz. Localized seams in the same deposit have variations in
composition, including the quantity of the major minerals, accessory minerals and
carbonaceous materials such as lignite. They are fine-grained and plastic in nature.
Ball clays are relatively scarce deposits due to the combination of geological factors
needed for their formation and preservation. They are mined in parts of the Eastern
United States and from three sites in Devon and Dorset in South West England. They are
commonly used in the construction of many ceramic articles, where their primary role is to
either to impart plasticity or to aid rheological stability during the shaping processes.
SHALE CLAY
Shale clay is the commonest of the clays. It is used for making bricks, building blocks, tiles
and earthen ware pots.
Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of mud that is a mix of flakes
of clay minerals and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especially
quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable. Shale is characterized by
breaks along thin laminae or parallel layering or bedding less than one centimeter in
thickness, called fissility. Mudstones, on the other hand, are similar in composition but do
not show the fissility.
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FIRE CLAY.
Fire clay has low plasticity, but has a high resistance to heat and is used for making fire-
bricks and insulating bricks.

PROPERTIES OF CLAYS.
The properties of clay depend on various factors such as the location of formation, the
length of formation (i.e., Maturity of the clay deposit) and the process of formation.
Clays used in ceramics must possess three main qualities of: -
1) Plasticity.
2) Porosity
3) Vitrification

Plasticity
Plasticity refers to the elasticity of clay. Clay must be plastic in order to be worked into a
form. This plasticity allows clay to be manipulated into all sorts of shapes and can be worked
to a very fine degree.

Porosity.
Porosity is the ability of clay to absorb water, air and other fluids. This porosity allows the
clay to dry without cracking before firing. However, clay must be dried in a cool place to
prevent rapid drying which can lead to cracking.
Porosity is indirectly related to hydraulic conductivity; for two similar sandy aquifers, the one
with a higher porosity will typically have a higher hydraulic conductivity (more open area for
the flow of water), but there are many complications to this relationship. Clays, which
typically have very low hydraulic conductivity also have very high porosities (due to the
structured nature of clay minerals), which means clays can hold a large volume of water
per volume of bulk material, but they do not release water rapidly.

Vitrification.
Vitrification is the ability for clay to convert into a glassy substance (vitreous state) during
firing to turn it into a strong and hard material which is glass-like.
Vitrification is the transition of a substance into a glass.

CLAY BODIES.
Clay bodies are blended clays for ceramic work. Clays are blended for certain types of
ceramic wares.
Blended clays are made to suit particular techniques and firing methods. There are three
main ingredients necessary in the preparation of clay bodies: -
1) Plastic clay such as ball clay.
2) Stiffening such as group flint, grog, bone ash, silica, sand, or talc.

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 3) Fusing agents such as ground feldspar, whiting frit, or ground glass.
An example of a blended clay is one which contains about 55% local clay, 20% frit, 15%
silica, and 10% talc.
When preparing clay bodies, it is important to consider factors such as stickiness,
shrinkage, grittiness and firing.

Sticky body
If a body is too sticky, more fire clay should be added, or less ball clay should be used.
Gritty body.
A gritty body has too much sand or grog in it or has not been screened properly.
Shrinking body.
A clay which tends to shrink too much or to warp needs more fire clay and less earthenware.
Brittle body.
A clay which fires to a brittle state has been fired at too high a temperature, or does not
contain enough kaolin or silica in it.
It may also have too much flux.
Vitrification.
Kaolin or silica raises the vitrification temperature of a clay body.

LOW SHRINKAGE CLAY BODIES.

Porcelain and stoneware bodies have a tendency to shrink because they contain more
water than earthenware bodies which contain coarser clay and grogs.
Ground fired clay, calcined kaolin and grog can be added to a body to reduce shrinkage.
If porcelain and stoneware bodies are fired at lower temperature, their shrinkage will reduce.
Shrinkage can also be reduced by adding to the clay 2% to 6% crushed and screened
organic materials such as nutshells, straw, or sawdust.

PREPARATION OF CLAY FOR FORMATION OF CERAMIC WARE.

Freshly dug clay must undergo certain preparation stages before being used.
NB/ some clays can be used without adding anything to them, while some can be added
soil or grog to reduce their plasticity.

The preparation stages of clay are: -

1) Digging
2) Slaking
3) Mixing
4) Wedging
5) Storing

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Digging.
Clay is dug from locations that are rich in clay. Clay is lumpy when it is dug and cannot be
used in this state. Impurities such as stones, glass and pieces of wood must be removed
so as to avoid the form exploding during firing.

Slaking.
Slaking is a process of soaking clay in water for a period of three to four days. Clay and
water mix to reduce the lumps of clay into a homogeneous mass.

Mixing.
After slaking, the clay is mixed with a wooden stick (or electric mixer) into a porridge like
consistency. The clay is sieved to remove any other impurities.
The finely sieved clay is put into a bucket and at this stage grog or kaolin can be added.
After the clay has been thoroughly mixed, it is allowed to partially dry in shallow wooden
boxes.
A pugmill can be used to mix clay and additives. This is a device which thoroughly mixes
clay and water to form a malleable mass. The clay is ready to use when it is sticky to the
touch, and when it rolls easily into a ball or sausage shape.
NB/ when clay is mixed to this porridge consistency it is referred to as a slip.

Wedging.
Wedging is a process of kneading clay which is sticky to the touch. Kneading is necessary
process which expels air and renders the clay into a smooth consistency.
It is important to remove air from clay to prevent forms (pots) from cracking during the firing
process.
Wedging is done on a solid table covered with plaster of Paris. The plaster of Paris absorbs
the excess water but does not allow the clay to dry too rapidly.
Traditional potters wedge their clay on banana leaves or in troughs.

Storing.
Wedged clay is stored in polythene bags or plastic buckets with lids to prevent it from drying
out.
It can also be put into ground pits lined with plastic or banana leaves.
If the clay does dry out, it can be mixed with water and left to stand until it is re-wedged.
NB/ clay that has been fired cannot be reworked by soaking it in water.

HAND BUILDING TECHNIQUES.

There are various techniques in hand-built ceramic forms, these are: -
1) Pinch
2) Coil
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 3) Slab
4) Ball
5) Throwing

Pinch.
The pinch (method) technique is a simple one in which a lump of wedged clay is rolled into
a ball and then pinched with the fingers to form a hollow form.
The walls of the clay form should be thin or because if they are too thick the form will be
heavy and even crack during firing.

Coil.
The coil, or coiling technique involves the use of even rolls of clay applied on top of each
other to create a hollow form.
The coils are then smoothened down inside and outside the form using a smooth object like
the back of a spoon. Sometimes the outside can be left unsmoothed to create textural
effects.
The coiling method is a versatile one which can be used to produce small, medium and
large ceramic wares.

Slab.
The slab technique is used to create forms using slabs of flat clay cut into the required
shape.
The slabs are joined together with slip or by carefully smoothening clay over the joints.

Ball.
The ball technique is very similar to the pinch method. A lump of clay is rolled into a big ball
and the elbow or fist is used to shape the clay to the required form by gradually enlarging
and scooping out clay. Many balls of clay can also be carefully built up into a three-
dimensional form.

Throwing.
The throwing technique is a faster method of making ceramic ware. It involves the use of a
potter’s wheel on which wedged clay is placed and formed while the wheel is rotating.
There are various types of potter’s wheels, but the basic ones are: -
1) Kick wheel
2) Electric wheel

The kick wheel has a heavy fly wheel which the potter kicks with the foot to rotate a central
shaft which in turn rotates the upper wheel on which the clay is to be formed.
The clay is thrown into the centre of the wheel and manipulated to create the form.

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The electric wheel has an electric pedal which the potter activates with the foot.
It is preferred more than the kick-wheel.
Throwing on the wheel requires a lot of practice. The clay must be ‘thrown’ more or less
accurately onto the centre of the wheel and kept centred during the formation of the ceramic
form.
If the clay mass is not centred properly, the pot will be distorted (deformed).

The three most important points to remember when throwing clay are: -
1) Centering the clay
2) Hollowing
3) Pulling up
4) Shaping
Centering.
The clay should be thrown onto the rotating wheel and pressed down with a screwing
motion.
Centering is checked with a fingertip as the wheel is turning. The form should not wobble,
if it does then the form is not centered properly. The form should be centered again before
creating any shape otherwise the shape will be distorted.
The lump of clay is pulled upwards to form a cylindrical shape.

Hollowing.
Hollowing must be carried out only when the form has been centred accurately. Hollowing
is done by cupping the hands around the cylindrical form and pressing the thumb into the
centre and down as far as it will go.
NB/ Both thumbs can be used for hollowing.

The thumbs are taken out and the right hand is cupped around the side of the cylinder while
the other hand is used to enlarge the hollow as the wheel rotates.
The cylindrical form is pulled up to the desired shape.

Pulling up.
Pulling up the form involves actually pulling up the clay into a cylindrical form, with a motion
of pulling up, pressing down, pulling up, and cupping the hands around the shape to pull
and manipulate the clay into the required form.
Too much pulling will distort and crack the shape, especially if the walls of the form become
too thin. Too little pulling will give a heavy form.

Shaping.
From the cylindrical form, any type of ceramic ware can be created by pushing down and
pulling up the clay into required form.
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Potter’s wheel
In pottery, a potter’s wheel is a machine used in the shaping of round ceramic wares. The
wheel may also be used during the process of trimming excess body from dried wares and
for applying incised decoration or rings of color. Use of the potter’s wheel became
widespread throughout the Old World but was unknown in the Pre-Columbian New World,
where pottery was hand-made by methods that included coiling and beating.
The potter’s wheel may occasionally be referred to as a “potter’s lathe”. However, that
term is better used for another design of machine that is used for a different shaping
process, turning, similar to that used for the shaping of metal and wood articles.
The techniques of jiggering and jollying can be seen to be an extension of the potter’s wheel:
in jiggering, a shaped tool is slowly brought down onto plastic clay body that has been
placed on top of a rotating plaster mould. The jigger tool shapes one face, whilst the mould
the other. The term is specific to the shaping of flatware, such as plates, whilst a similar
technique, jollying, refers to the production of holloware, such as cups.

History of the potter’s wheel.

Many early ceramics were hand-built using a simple coiling technique in which clay body
was rolled into long threads that were then pinched and beaten together to form the body
of a vessel. In the coiling method of construction, all of the energy required to form the main
part of a piece is supplied indirectly by the hands of the potter. Early ceramics built by coiling
were often placed on mats or large leaves to allow them to be worked more conveniently.
This arrangement allowed the potter to turn the vessel under construction rather than walk
around it to add threads of clay body, and it has been proposed that the earliest forms of
the potter’s wheel were developed as an extension to this procedure. The earliest versions
of the wheel were probably turned slowly by hand or by foot while coiling a pot, but later
developments allowed energy stored in a flywheel to be used to speed up the process of
throwing.

Techniques of throwing
A round, moist lump of clay body is thrown down onto the wheel head or a bat (sometimes
called a “batter board”) attached to it. The lump is made even and forced to the centre of
the wheel by applying pressure with the hands. The thrower finds the center of the clay by
moving a thumb across the lump until no more friction is felt. The thumb is pressed into the
center of the lump, stopping about 5 mm from the wheel head. The hole thus made is
widened. The sides thus defined are pulled up and made thinner by pressure between the
hands. The vessel is shaped, and the mouth is smoothed. The vessel is cut from the wheel
head with a cheese wire and left to stiffen. Sometimes the stiffened vessel is inverted on
the wheel and trimmed with a sharp tool.
A skilled potter can quickly throw a vessel from 15 kg of clay. Alternatively, by throwing and
adding coils of clay then throwing again, pots up to four feet high may be made.

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DECORATING TECHNIQUES.
Decorating ceramic ware techniques include: -
1) Marks
2) Sgraffito
3) Engobe
4) Slip trailing
5) Impressions
6) Incising
7) Excising
8) Burnishing
9) Inlaying
10) Resist

Marks.
Marks can be made on ceramic forms with the fingers or a tool with marks. Different
textures can be created by hatching the clay.
Sgraffito.
The sgraffito technique involves scratching a design on the surface of a ceramic form with
a sharp object such as comb, nail, compass point and sharp metals.
Glaze slip of different colours from the main clay body is applied on the form and scratched
through to form the design.
When the form is fired, the glazed surface contracts with the pattern areas which are in the
colour of clay.

Engobe.
Engobe is similar to sgraffito. Engobe is white slip applied on a leather-hard form after which
various types of decorations can be used over it.
Coloured clay slips are either applied on the fired (bisque) or unfired (greenware) forms.
Successive layers of these coloured slips can be applied.

Slip-trailing.
Slip trailing is a technique which involves the use of liquid clays (slips) which are applied by
dipping, spraying, sponging and trailing.
Slip-trailing can be done while the form is being formed on the wheel.
NB/ slip is a finely ground clay mixed with water to a consistency of cream. It is used for
decorating pottery.

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Impressions.
Designs can be created on the surface of ceramic forms by impressing objects onto the
moist clay. Patterned stamps can be impressed to form all-over patterns, or partial patterns.
Textured materials such as basketry and woven fabric can be impressed onto the form to
create interesting textures.
After the impressions have been made, coloured slips may be brushed onto the grooves.

Incising.
Shapes can be incised, or cut, to create patterns on ceramic forms. The incised grooves
can be lightly done or deeply cut into the form.

Excising.
Excising means to cut out shapes from a ceramic form to leave open spaces.

Burnishing.
When a clay form is leather-hard it can be polished to a high shine by rubbing. Any smooth
surface object such as the back of a spoon, or pebble, or shiny pods can be used. The form
is burnished before the form is fired.
Burnishing enriches the colour of the piece. Burnishing is done on unglazed wares.

Inlaying.
Inlaying is done by carefully cutting out a groove in the ceramic form, and embedding that
groove with a cut shape. The shape is held in the groove with slip. Alternatively, the cut
shape can be brushed with slip and laid on the ceramic form.
The spot where the shape is to be laid should be slightly scratched so that the shape can
adhere to it.
Inlaid shapes can be same as the colour of the main ceramic form or can be of different
colours.
Slip is used to fix these inlaid shapes to the clay forms.

Resist.
Resist involves the application of wax to the surface of a ceramic form so as to resist slip
or glaze.
For example, a pot can be patterned with wax, leaving some areas unwaxed.
When the slip is applied to the surface, the wax will resist it but the unwaxed sections will
absorb it.
Alternatively wax can be applied to cover the complete surface of the form after which
patterns are scratched through and slip applied.
The slip will flow into the scratched areas.

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GLAZES AND GLAZING TECHNIQUES.
Glaze is a vitreous substance used to cover ceramic forms in order to make them attractive,
durable and impervious to liquids.
The vitreous substance is applied to unfired ware called greenware or to fired ware called
bisque ware.
The important factors to consider in glazes are the composition and glazing techniques.
Glazes are composed of a mixture of: -
1) Feldspar
2) Whiting
3) Silica

Feldspar (alumina)
Feldspar contains aluminum silicates of potassium, calcium, and barium.
Alumina is aluminium oxide. It is also found in kaolin and ball clay. Alumina is important in
glaze because it prevents the glaze from melting too rapidly and running off the ceramic
ware.
Alumina can be considered an important bonding agent which holds the glaze on the clay.

Whiting (flux).
Whiting is basically white chalk or calcium carbonate. Whiting is a flux. A flux is a fusing
agent added to a glaze to aid it in melting.
It is the lowest-melting compound in a glaze. It lowers the melting temperature of a glaze.
When a flux is combined with silica it helps to break down the higher-melting alumina-silica
compounds to eventually form glass (vitreous substances).
A flux with a metal oxide like calcium carbonate gives a low-melting point and helps in
fusing. Other materials which can be used as flux are lead (very poisonous), borax, sodium
carbonate (soda-ash), dolomite (contains calcia and magnesia), talc (magnesium silicate),
and potash.
NB/ sodium carbonate is a very active flux.

Silica (flint).
Silica is silicon dioxide, commonly called quartz. Silica is the basis of glass. It is also found
in sand. Silica contains a high number of vitreous substances and under sufficient heat can
melt into glass.
Silica is a flint, that is, it is a vitrifying agent.
PROPERTIES OF GLAZE INGREDIENTS.
It is useful to understand the qualities of the following ingredients used in glazes.
1) Ash
2) Calcium carbonate
3) Cobalt carbonate

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 4) Cobalt oxide
5) Cobalt sulfates
6) Colemanite
7) Copper carbonate
8) Copper oxide
9) Dolomite
10) Frit
11) Iron oxide
12) Lead carbonate
13) Potassium dichromate
14) Tin oxide
15) Mica
16) Sodium carbonate
17) Rutile
18) Sodium chloride.
19) Volcanic ash
ASH
Ash is one of the cheapest glazes. The ashes of trees, straws, leaves, and other organic
materials all contain amounts of alumina, small amounts of iron phosphorus, lime, potash,
and magnesia.
These substances can vitrify at high temperatures to form glazes.

CALCIUM CARBONATE.
Calcium carbonate is chalk and is produced by processing marble or limestone, or from
chalk deposits. It is a high-fibre flux and can be used in very small amounts in low-fired
glazes.

COBALT CARBONATE.
Cobalt carbonate is used for blue glazes. It is a powerful colorant and can be mixed with
manganese to produce purple glaze.

COLEMANITE.
Colemanite is calcium borate. It is a low-fire flux. It prevents cracking in pots.

COPPER OXIDES.
Copper oxides can be combined with various other ingredients to produce different colours.
For example, copper and tin and an alkaline flux produces turquoise colour.
Copper and potash give yellowish-green colour.
Copper and zinc and fluxes of sodium, potassium, and barium produce a blue colour.

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DOLOMITE.
Dolomite contains calcia and magnesia. It is used in clay bodies to produce a longer firing
range.

FRIT
A frit is a partial or complete glaze which is melted and then reground for the purpose of
eliminating the toxic effects of lead, or for making borax and soda ash soluble.

IRON OXIDE.
Iron oxide is used to produce tan, brown, and red bodies in glazes colour.

LEAD CARBONATE.
This is white lead which is extremely poisonous and should not be used in schools. It should
not be used for serving eating utensils. Lead gases are brightly coloured. They react with
acid even after they have been fired.
Lead-glazed ware should not be used to store substances that are acidic, such as lemon
juice.

POTASSIUM DICHROMATE.
This is a poisonous substance. It is used to produce green glazes and can be combined
with tin to develop low-fire stains in red and pink hues.

TIN OXIDE.
This is also called stannic oxide. It is used to make glazes opaque. It can be used alone or
as a frit.

MICA.
Mica is hydrous silicates of aluminium and potassium. It is used to strengthen clay bodies
and for thermal shock.

SODIUM CARBONATE.
This is called soda ash. It is a very active flux. It is also used as a frit in glazes.

RUTILE.
Rutile is a titanium oxide. It is used for tan and orange colours.
SODIUM CHLORIDE.
Sodium chloride is common salt. It can be used as a glaze. It is injected in a bisque fire at
its peak temperature. The heat vaporizes the salt and chlorine escapes as a gas, while
sodium is deposited on the ceramic form to give a clear, transparent mottled glaze.
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VOLCANIC ASH.
Volcanic ash is a fine, powdery ash found in volcanic areas. It can be fired at a high
temperature to produce a whitish glaze.

Types of glazes
Glazes are classified according to their ingredients. Glazes can have certain qualities which
include those that are: -
1) Transparent
2) Opaque
3) Gloss
4) Matt.

Glaze- means to cover (a piece of pottery) with a protective shiny coating.

Transparent glaze.
This type of glaze is clear and reveals the colour of the clay body or the under glaze. it
enhances the colour of the body.

Opaque glazes.
Opaque glazes are smooth and glass-like. They are highly reflective and brilliant and they
cover the clay body completely.

Gloss glaze.
Gloss glazes are smooth and glass-like. They are highly reflective and brilliant.

Matt glaze.
Matt glazes are not brilliant, but rather rough and more porous.
NB/ porous means to allow air and liquids to be absorbed.

SELF-GLAZING BODIES
Self-glazing clay bodies are mixtures of grog, kaolin, silica, and flux (such as soda ash,
borax, sodium bicarbonate). The soluble fluxes emerge through the non-plastic clay to the
surface during the dry stage. When the ware is fired, the self-glazing bodies mature and the
colours are developed.

Examples of self-glazing bodies are: -

a). Tenmoku
b). Egyptian paste.

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TENMOKU.
Tenmoku is a greenish glaze which is produced by mixing equal amount of earthenware
clay and feldspar.

EGYPTIAN PASTE.
Egyptian paste is a self-glazing mixture of grog, kaolin, silica, and flux (e.g., Soda ash, salt,
sodium bicarbonate) and colorants which are usually metallic carbonates plus copper.

LOW FIRE GLAZES.

These are glazes which melt at low temperatures. They usually contain fluxes such as
borax, colemanite, or lead. These glazes are mixed with silica-rich materials in the ratios
of 1:1 or 2:1.
TERRA SIGILATA.
Terra sigilata is liquid clay slip applied by brushing, dipping or spraying and then fired at
900°C to 1000°C to produce a half-glossy red-brown glaze.

STAINS.
In ceramics, stains refer to certain colorants composed of metallic oxides and carbonates
and fritted pigments.
Stain mixtures contain cobalt, copper, chrome, manganese, iron, nickel or uranium oxides
and carbonates. Fritted ceramic pigments are made by grinding and calcining ceramic
materials and oxides, and re-grinding and washing them.
These are known as commercial stains. Raw stains are mixtures of oxides and ceramic
materials which are thoroughly blended to form a mixture which is ready to use.
The oxides are the colouring agents in these mixtures. Stains can be used alone or can be
mixed with glazes and clays.
When used alone they are applied to the surface of raw clay, dry clay, bisque ware, or over
a glaze. in order that they adhere to the surface properly, stains are usually mixed with gum
and water, or with glycerin and water, or oil and turpentine.

FIRING CERAMIC WARES.

In order to make clay forms permanent they need to be fired. Firing is the most important
step in ceramics. This process enables the clay to change from a raw material to a
permanent, liquid-proof material (when glazed) which cannot be reworked into a plastic
state by adding water. Firing requires kilns.

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KILNS.
Kilns are special ovens or furnaces used for firing ceramics. They vary in size, fuel, and
temperature ranges. A kiln must be capable of reaching the required maturing temperature
of a clay body and glaze.
The temperature of a kiln depends on the types of clay or glaze used on the body.
The size of the kiln depends on the amounts of work to be fired, and on the width and height
of the ceramic forms.
The type of fuel used is determined by the type of kiln and sometimes on the clay body and
glaze used.
The fuel can be wood, gas, straw, or electricity.

There are three basic types of kilns: -

a) Bonfire
b) Gas
c) Electric

Bonfire kiln.
The bonfire kiln is the simplest type. It is simply a shallow pit lined with straw and twigs and
into which pots are placed one on top of another. The wares are covered with wood and
grass and then fired.
The wood is arranged so as to allow enough circulation of oxygen.
Bonfire kilns are only suitable for low-fired wares. These types of kilns cannot attain very
high temperatures for glazed wares.

Gas kilns.
Gas kilns have refractory boxes in which the ware is placed. The flames envelop the box
but do not touch the wares. This refractory box is called a muffle.
Another type of refractory box is called a sagger.
The difference in a sagger is that it is first loaded outside the chamber and then put into the
firing chamber for firing.
Gas kilns are usually built from refractory bricks and have good circulation and chimneys to
draw the air and allow the heat to circulate evenly.
The muffle not only protects the wares from the flames but also from the combustion
impurities.
The kiln is fired with gas which is stored in a properly made gas container kept a distant
away from the actual kiln.
ELECTRIC KILNS.
Electric kilns use electricity. The inside of the kiln is insulated with special refractory bricks.
The outside of the kiln is usually made of good quality steel.
The inside walls and inside doors are covered with rows of electric elements.
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The wares are stacked on special refractory stands. The door is tightly bolted during firing
so that no heat can escape.
The electric kiln has the option of firing ceramic wares to various temperatures.

TEMPERATURES.
The temperature is very important during firing. Experienced potters have a knowledge of
when a kiln has attained a right temperature by looking at the colour of the fire flame.
Firing temperatures range from low to high. An accurate way of reading temperature is by
using a pyrometer and pyrometric cones.
The pyrometer is used for measuring high temperatures and is similar to a thermometer. It
has the temperature on a dial. The pyrometer cones are triangular pyramids made of clay
specially formulated to soften and bend when the required temperature has been attained.
The cones are embedded in a clump of clay to hold them steady. The cones are numbered
in different sizes for different ranges of temperatures.
They are observed through a spy hole in the kiln. When the required temperature of the
ware is reached, the cone begins to bend over.

TYPES OF FIRING.
There are three basic Types of firing in ceramics: -
a) Bisque
b) Glaze (glost)
c) Decorating.

Bisque fire.
Bisque fire is the first firing of raw ceramic ware. During bisque firing the clay goes through
a number of changes. The first major changes occur at about 650°C to 930°C (1200°F to
1706°F) during which the chemicals and water in the clay molecules are drawn out and clay
fuses together.
A ceramic ware which has been bisque-fired will no longer disintegrate in water to become
plastic.
Bisque firing is done very slowly.
NB/ if the firing is done rapidly, the clay ware quickly turns to stream and the trapped air in
it expands and causes the ware to explode.

Glaze (Glost) Fire.

During the glaze firing also called glost, the glaze is transformed into a coating of glass
which fuses with the clay body. The maturing temperature for glaze is lower than that of the
clay.
Glaze fire is reached at 1859°F to 1904°F (1015°C to 1060°C) for low-fire glazes, such as
cone 8 and cone 10.

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NB/ (it is important that glazes pieces do not touch each other when being loaded, these is
because the glazes can fuse into each other during firing and the pieces will be difficult to
separate).

Glazed wares can be waxed at their bases to prevent them from sticking to the stacks, if
the glaze should run down on the stacks.

Decorating fire.
This type of fire is used for overglazes and lusters. Luster is a shiny metallic surface on
some pottery and porcelain.
The over-glazes and lusters are applied to bisque ware. The ware is then fired again to set
the overglazes and lusters.
The temperatures range from 1328°F (720°C) to 1380°F (770°C) for overglazes and from
1526°F (830°c)
To 1643°F (895°c) for lusters.
EXAMPLES OF GLAZES.
The following are examples of glazes which can be used on ceramic forms; they can be
altered proportionally if the results are not what each individual potter requires.

(i) wood ash glaze.

➢ 1 part earth-ware clay
➢ 1 part feldspar
➢ 1 part screened wood ash.
Mix with water and apply to clay body. Fire at cone 8 to cone 10.

(ii) Transparent Glaze.

➢ 13 parts whiting.
➢ 19 parts zinc.
➢ 20 parts feldspar.
➢ 29 parts flint.
➢ 19 parts kaolin.
Mix thoroughly and apply to clay body. Fire at cone 8 to cone 10.

(iii). Matt Glaze.

➢ 25 parts whiting.
➢ 40 parts Feldspar.
➢ 30 parts Kaolin.
➢ 5 parts titanium oxide.
Mix thoroughly and apply to clay body and fire at cone 8 and cone 10.

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