Fast-firing ceramic composition and ceramic article made therefrom

Abstract

Scrap glass is crushed and mixed with selected quantities of ball clay and wollastonite, the resulting raw-mix is press-molded into a green compact, and the latter is fired in air at a temperature above the softening point of the glass particles to provide a ceramic article that has a dense impervious structure and is electrically non-conductive. Selective amounts of bentonite and an inorganic pigment can also be included in the raw-mix formulation and talc, petalite or potter's flint can be substituted for the wollastonite. By properly correlating the molding pressure and firing schedule with the raw-mix formulation, the ceramic articles can be rapidly and economically mass-produced in various shapes and sizes. The invention is especially adapted for use in fabricating preformed insulator components for electric lamp bases and similar devices and, in addition to reducing their manufacturing cost, recycles large quantities of scrap glass such as bottles and the like which would otherwise pollute the environment.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.