Ceramics have been used by mankind for many years and are derived heating mixtures of clay and kaolin=like materials at high temperatures. Ceramics produced with boron additives become structures that are more resistant to physical impacts and chemicals compared to other ceramics developed without borates. Approximately 13% of world boron consumption is used for ceramic applications – specifically for ceramic glazes and enamels. Value added enamels developed with borates are generally preferred for coating metal alloyed products, while borate enhanced glazes are used for costing general ceramic products.
Boron enriched ceramic is generally preferred in industrial fields and everyday life. It is commonly used in building materials, kitchen utensils, and decorative items. Ceramic products, like tableware in kitchens and ceramic tiles in bathrooms, have a smoother, thinner, and more glassy structure when glazed with borate containing glazes. Borates are also useful for ceramic products developed for wide surface areas, like wall tiles. Boron is more economical and easier to process than similar products like silica and alumina, which can form glazes when heated at high temperatures through costly and technically difficult processes. Due to their low melting temperatures in the ceramic phase, borates prove important substitutes for many other materials when forming glazes.
Boron, which has strong melting and bonding properties, reduces glass fluidity and surface tension – making ceramics more resistant to physical impacts and chemical effects. Through the aestheticization of ceramic, borates help to obtain vivid and bright colors by ensuring better adhesion of the paint. Borate enriched ceramics, which are resistant to scratching, breaking, and crushing, have melting and sticking occur at lower temperatures.