Fireclay

Description

An infusible material that can withstand high temperatures without melting or cracking. Fireclays are most refractory when they contain a high proportion of Alumina (at least 45%) in Silica with less than 5% impurities such as Iron, Lime, and Magnesia. This high duty grade fireclay can generally withstand temperatures to at least 1600C and it is used for making firebrick, kiln linings, muffle furnaces, and crucibles. Common fireclays have 35-37% alumina.

Synonyms and Related Terms

fire-clay (Br.); argile réfractaire (Fr.); argila refractária (Port.); refractory clay;

Brand names: Klingenberg clay

Resources and Citations

• Ralph Mayer, A Dictionary of Art Terms and Techniques, Harper and Row Publishers, New York, 1969 (also 1945 printing)
• Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993
• Robert Fournier, Illustrated Dictionary of Practical Pottery, Chilton Book Company, Radnor, PA, 1992
• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998
• Art and Architecture Thesaurus Online, http://www.getty.edu/research/tools/vocabulary/aat/, J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, 2000