Ball Clay
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.
Read more about Ball Clay: History
Famous quotes containing the words ball and/or clay:
“‘Throw down the ball, ye Jew’s daughter,
Throw down the ball to me!’
‘Never a bit,’ says the Jew’s daughter,
‘Till up to me come ye.’”
—Unknown. Hugh of Lincoln (l. 13–16)
“I am sure my bones would not rest in an English grave, or my clay mix with the earth of that country. I believe the thought would drive me mad on my death-bed could I suppose that any of my friends would be base enough to convey my carcass back to her soil. I would not even feed her worms if I could help it.”
—George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)