Templado químico aplicado a gres porcelánicos españoles

This work studies the application of chemical tempering process in porcelain tiles made in Spain. The chemical tempering process is largely applied to glass and its main purpose is to increase the mechanical strength of these materials. To achieve this objective, three porcelain tiles made in Spain from different suppliers were selected. The industrial pieces were cut into small specimens with dimensions of 70 × 17 × 9 mm, length, width and thickness, respectively. These were then subjected to a chemical ion exchange treatment, also known as chemical tempering. The type of porcelain tile, the temperature and the time of the chemical treatment were varied according to a factorial design. The results showed a ∼55% increase in the breaking strength of one of the porcelain materials. In addition, the statistical study developed showed that the type of porcelain and the temperature of the chemical treatment were the variables that influenced the mechanical resistance to flexion of porcelain.