The Colloidal Nature of Kaolinite

摘要

Understanding the colloidal nature of kaolinite is critical to developing a well-controlled, repeatable process. Kaolinitic clays are the foundation of whiteware and traditional ceramic industries. Clays account for 95% of the specific surface area of a typical whiteware batch (composed of 45% kaolin and ball clays, 25% quartz and 30% feldspar) and thus dominate the batch rheology. Since production of whitewares most frequently begins in the slurry stage, understanding the colloidal nature of kaolinite is critical to developing a well-controlled, repeatable process. The commonly held view that kaolinite possesses negatively charged basal plane surfaces and positively charged edges is inconsistent with the mineralogy of kaolinite.