Applications of glaze and decor on dimensioned andesites used in construction sector Ali Sariisik a,⇑ , Gencay Sariisik b , Ahmet S ßentürk a a Afyon Kocatepe University, Faculty of Engineering, 03200 Afyonkarahisar, Turkey b Afyon Kocatepe University, Vocational School of _ Iscehisar, 03750 _ Iscehisar, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey article info Article history: Received 10 December 2010 Received in revised form 25 February 2011 Accepted 23 March 2011 Available online 30 April 2011 Keywords: Andesites Glaze Decor Construction sector New product abstract This report presents initial results of the development process of a new product using andesites obtained from Afyon/Iscehisar region as an alternative to traditional ceramic wall and floor tiles used in construc- tion sector. The series of characterization tests were conducted on andesite samples. Then, the samples were applied glaze for trial purposes. Analysis indicated that the andesite samples consisted of sanidine, mica and pyroxene minerals and its apparent porosity, density, water absorption and compressive strength values were 15.75%, 2610 g/cm 3 , 7.43% and 40.7 MPa, respectively. In heat microscope measure- ments, maximum sintering was recorded at 1138 °C. Linear expansion coefficient (a) of the andesite at 400 °C was 3.26  10 6 K 1 . Firing performed by using the prepared glaze recipe at approximately 1160 °C produced good results in terms of body-glaze harmony. In addition, different decorative surface finishes to be used in indoor and outdoor spaces were obtained via under glaze decorative technique. Published by Elsevier Ltd. 1. Introduction With its 4000-year history of marble production, Turkey is one of the oldest natural stone producers in the world. It is still one of the countries which have the largest natural stone reserves of the world. Natural Stone, in commercial terms, refers to rocks that can be cut and removed in blocks of economically-appropriate sizes; that can be cut smoothly at the desired sizes, and; to which polish- ing, ageing and other surface processes can be applied when re- quired. Natural stones are classified, according to their formation, as (i) metamorphic natural stones (marble, etc.); (ii) sedimentary natural stones (limestone, travertine, onyx, etc.); and (iii) mag- matic natural stones (granite, syenite, gabbro, trachyte, basalt, andesite and tuff). Andesites are classified into the volcanic rocks group, which constitutes a sub-group of magmatic rocks [1,2]. Afyon/Iscehisar region of Turkey – also known as the ‘‘Dokime- ion Region’’ in historical periods – has always been an important area for marble production and processing. However, uncontrolled use of clean and high-quality marble resources utilized as natural stone, a gradual decrease in the natural stone reserves and differ- ent products demanded by the market have obliged researchers to focus on developing new products which can be used in indoor and outdoor spaces [3,4]. Andesite has been used in Turkey and many other parts of the world for quite a long time, particularly in civil engineering and architectural procedures such as production of pavements, kerb- stones, staves, coping, windowsills, jambs, and friezes. Andesite is a silica-containing (53–63%), fine-grained volcanic rock, which gives a colour between grey and black. It has a porphyritic texture and is composed of plagioclase and pyroxene microliths (clinopy- roxene and orthopyroxene), feldspar, pyroxene and biotite pheno- crysts in a glass matrix, and magnetite minerals in small amounts. Depending on its dark colour mineral components, the colour of andesite varies from light grey to grey, dark grey, black and red- dish–brownish–pinky tones [5–8]. The porosity rate of andesite is between 10% and 25%. Therefore, andesites to be used in indoor and outdoor spaces are exposed to various physical and chemical factors, such as cold, heat, moisture and chemicals commonly used at home, and; various impact-in- duced wearing factors. Andesite materials should be resistant to factors to which they may be exposed in specific environments [3,4]. Ceramic glaze is the vitreous layer produced by melting and solidifying silicate mixtures (according to the method and at the temperature required by the related technology) on ceramic bodies. Depending on different firing temperatures, ceramic glazes provide the underlying material with particular character- istics, such as mechanical strength, impermeability, electrical resistivity and resistance to acids/bases [9,10]. Decoration is the process of directly or indirectly transferring the prepared glaze (by using auxiliary tools) into the surfaces that will be dec- orated, using patterns prepared on special-texture nylon or silk sieves [11]. 0950-0618/$ - see front matter Published by Elsevier Ltd. doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2011.03.062 ⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 272 2281423; fax: +90 272 2281422. E-mail address: sariisikali@yahoo.com (A. Sariisik). Construction and Building Materials 25 (2011) 3694–3702 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Construction and Building Materials journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/conbuildmat