Ball clay is a sticky, fine-grained clay used in ceramics and ground surface materials. It is composed of kaolin, mica, quartz, and other minerals. It is rare and found in England and some eastern US states. The largest deposits are in County Devon and Tennessee and Kentucky. The clay is mined with backhoes and processed by shredding, drying, and grinding. It can be combined with other minerals and used for porcelain, China, and diamond ball clay for baseball diamonds and horse stables. The Romans first mined plasticine for pottery, and the British rediscovered it in the mid-15th century for pipe making.
Ball clay’s unique mineral formulation provides a plastic or sticky substance that civilizations have used since ancient times. Miners dig this clay in England and some eastern states of the United States. Ceramic and ground surface materials may contain the substance. Products may contain ball clay alone or a combination of the clay mixed with other minerals.
This fine-grained, sticky clay is relatively inexpensive, but is considered rare due to the geological factors required for its formation. Ball clay is composed of varying amounts of kaolin, mica, and quartz. It also usually contains other trace minerals and carbon byproducts. Raw clay generally varies in color from shades of blue to beige and white, depending on the amount of kaolin and iron oxides contained in the clay. Companies that make porcelain usually prefer the whiter variety.
County Devon in southwest England contains the largest deposits of clay in Europe. In the United States, California and many eastern states contain ball clay deposits. Tennessee and Kentucky generally have the largest deposits, which can be up to 20 acres (8 hectares). Clay fields can extend 18 to 40 feet (5.4 to 12 meters) below the surface.
The British originally dug the clay ball by hand with spades. The miners cut cubes commonly measuring one cubic foot (0.028 cubic meters). Handling and transporting the clay often smoothed the edges of the soft substance, making the slabs appear more like a ball than a cube. Today, workers dig the clay pits with backhoes. Instead of small cubes, miners generally mine ball clay in stepped levels.
Shredders break the material into small pieces that are roughly the size of golf balls. Ball clay suppliers often sell the clay in this high-moisture form in powdered or dustless form. The next stage of processing is drying and grinding the clay. Sanitary ware manufacturers in porcelain and China use this elaborate shape. The clay can further suffer from exposure to sewage, paste and combination with other ingredients.
Manufacturers create diamond ball clay by mixing the substance with fine sand. Communities generally spread and compact this product into a flat, smooth, solid surface. Clay in this form is typically used for the surface of baseball diamonds, horse stables and paddocks.
The ancient Romans in England were the first to mine plasticine. In Roman times, people used the substance to create basic pottery. The British did not mine the rich mineral substance again until the mid-15th century. Sir Walter Raleigh popularized smoking tobacco and the clay was used in pipe making due to the material’s sticky yet sturdy properties.
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