Chemical corrosion of sanitary glazes of variable grain size composition in acid and basic aqueous solution media

Abstract Glazes are responsible for the majority of the final surface properties of ceramic products, including their chemical corrosion resistance in contact with solutions of either acid or alkaline reaction. It is known that by adjusting their molar compositions it is possible, to some extent, to control the reactivity of glazes with such solutions. However, the allowable range of molar composition changes is limited, because this would, at the same time, modify other glaze parameters, such as fusibility, colour, gloss, or hardness. The investigation results presented in the article demonstrate that there is a potential for a significant improvement in the chemical corrosion resistance and other surface parameters of glazes through selecting the grain size of particular groups of raw materials used. On the example of glazes intended for sanitary products it has been proved that the proper selection of the grain size of quartz, feldspars and all rest raw materials results in a distinct reduction of the degree of corrosion caused by the action of water solutions of NaOH and HCl.