The effect of organic binders on the fracture properties of kaolin refractories, Journal of Material Science

Abstract

The fracture properties of kaolin-based refrac-tories prepared using plant-derived binders from okra and‘‘mrenda’’ have been investigated and compared. It wasobserved that the MOR of fired samples improved from37.5±0.1 MPa (for binder-free samples) to 69.6±0.1 MPa, and to 120.0±0.1 MPa for okra- and ‘mrenda’-plasticized samples, respectively, while the fracturetoughness increased from 3.9±0.1 MPa (for binder-freesamples) to 5.6±0.1 and 5.7±0.1 MPa for okra and‘mrenda’-plasticized samples, respectively. It is concludedthat the use of organic binders enhances the reliability andservice life of kaolin refractories used in thermally fluctu-ating environments