The raw materials used for ceramic mixtures – before turning into the raw ceramic body ready for the subsequent stages of the production process that take place along the glazing line – undergo to many processes.

Following here the most important.

1. GRINDING

2. SIEVING

3. STOCKING

4. ATOMIZATION

5. PRESSING / FORMING

The ceramic mixture, before the forming phase (during which the atomized powders are pressed or compacted), undergoes to a wet grinding process that involves the use of ground water (recovery water and groundwater).

During this step that is developed by means of Alsing type mills, the ground water together with the inorganic raw materials, forms the slurry also called barbottina.

Once it has been grinded, the slurry is usually sieved and stored in tanks within which it remains under constant stirring to avoid gelling and/or sedimentation phenomena.

After stocking – whose duration can range according to manufacturer’s needs – the process goes on with the atomization by means of spray dryers (also called atomizers). Inside the atomizer the barbottina is nebulized by means of very high temperatures, able to violently evaporate the water content.

This evaporation turns the droplets of the slurry into tiny hollow spheres that form the atomized powder, ready for the pressing/forming phase.