Fluorspar

Fluorite, Calcium Fluoride, Blue John

Chemistry

CaO50.000
SiO23.000

Volatiles

LOI46.400

Significant Temperatures

Hazards

Miscellaneous

Notes

CaF2 is used in frit preparation and as a low-fire enamel opacifier. It's value lies in the fact that it is an active flux and at the same time an opacifier.

At higher temperatures the fluorine becomes volatile and is released as a poisonous gas. This happens as O2 combines with CaF2 to produce CaO and F2 gas. Even if the gas can be tolerated, the material slowly decomposes to evolve the fluorine gas, and thus is troublesome for use in glazes because of the blistering problems.

If fluorspar is being used as a source of Ca at higher temperatures to create CaO oxide in a glass there has to be an oxidizing atmosphere in the kiln to supply the needed oxygen.

Fluorspars have varying amounts of iron contamination and can be very clean.


Data

Linked Articles

URLs

Suppliers

Authors

XML

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<material name="Fluorspar" descrip="Fluorite, Calcium Fluoride, Blue John" generic="1" rawmineral="0" searchkey="Fluorite" loi="0.00">
<families>
<family name="Flux Source"/>
</families>
<regions>
<region name="North America"/>
</regions>
<oxides>
<oxide symbol="CaO" name="Calcium Oxide, Calcia" status="U" percent="50.000" tolerance=""/>
<oxide symbol="SiO2" name="Silicon Dioxide, Silica" status="" percent="3.000" tolerance=""/>
</oxides>
<volatiles>
<volatile symbol="" name="" percent="46.400" tolerance=""/>
</volatiles>
<hazards>
<hazard name="Fluorspar"/>
</hazards>
<temperatures>
<temperature temperature="1330C" notes="Melts"/>
</temperatures>
<suppliers>
<supplier name="Seaforth Products Corporation" country="US" url="www.seaforthinc.com" label=""/>
</suppliers>
<notes>
<note>CaF2 is used in frit preparation and as a low-fire enamel opacifier. It\'s value lies in the fact that it is an active flux and at the same time an opacifier.

At higher temperatures the fluorine becomes volatile and is released as a poisonous gas. This happens as O2 combines with CaF2 to produce CaO and F2 gas. Even if the gas can be tolerated, the material slowly decomposes to evolve the fluorine gas, and thus is troublesome for use in glazes because of the blistering problems.

If fluorspar is being used as a source of Ca at higher temperatures to create CaO oxide in a glass there has to be an oxidizing atmosphere in the kiln to supply the needed oxygen.

Fluorspars have varying amounts of iron contamination and can be very clean.</note>
</notes>
<testdata>
<testitem testname="0" value="3.10"/>
<testitem testname="0" value="1330C M"/>
<testitem testname="0" value="3.10"/>
<testitem testname="0" value="1330C M"/>
</testdata>
</material>



Much more information with complete interlinking to many related
databases can be found by logging into the www.ceramicmaterials.info database


Copyright 2003 http://digitalfire.com, All Rights Reserved
Please support http://ceramicmaterials.info to improve this library
instrial.gif (4460 bytes)

INSIGHT is ceramic chemistry
calculation software that runs on
Windows, Mac and Linux and talks
to this web site.