What Is Deflocculant

: an agent that causes deflocculation specifically : a chemical (as sodium carbonate) added to a clay slip to minimize settling out.

How does a Deflocculant work?

Deflocculants are electrolyte-sourcing liquids or powders (like sodium silicate, Darvan) that are added in small amounts. They work their magic by imparting electrical charges to clay particles making them repel each other (more accurately it is said to be a condition where repulsive forces predominate).

What can I use as a Deflocculant?

Main Deflocculants The most efficient compounds having deflocculant action for uses in ceramics are sodium silicate, polyphosphates (pyro – tripoly – tetrapoly – etc.) and organic sodium and ammonium polyelectrolytes.

What is the use of sodium silicate?

Sodium silicate is used as a deflocculant in casting slips helping reduce viscosity and the need for large amounts of water to liquidize the clay body. It is also used to create a crackle effect in pottery, usually wheel-thrown. A vase or bottle is thrown on the wheel, fairly narrow and with thick walls.

What does sodium silicate do to slip?

Sodium Silicate is a chemical used to deflocculate casting slip. Too much Sodium Silicate causes overdeflocculation. (See the section on Over-Deflocculation.) Sodium Silicate may be stored for extended periods in tightly closed plastic containers.

Is alum a coagulant or flocculant?

To accomplish this, the water is treated with aluminum sulfate, commonly called alum, which serves as a flocculant. Raw water often holds tiny suspended particles that are very difficult for a filter to catch. Alum causes them to clump together so that they can settle out of the water or be easily trapped by a filter.

Is Redisperse difficult?

The repulsive forces between individual particles allow them to slip past each other as they sediment. The slow rate of settling prevents the entrapment of liquid within the sediment, which thus becomes compacted and can be very difficult to redisperse.

Is sodium silicate a Deflocculant?

Sodium silicate is the most popular deflocculant used in casting slips for many years (as a source of sodium ions). It is nearly always used with soda ash (when employed alone it can make a slip ‘stringy’ and thixotropic). The material is effective, reliable and inexpensive.

How much vinegar do you put in a slip?

Add 1-2 cups of white vinegar to the torn-up paper. Blends the paper and vinegar together using a hand blender. Or if you don’t have a blender, you can use a fork. Then add some small pieces of broken bone dry clay to the liquid.

How can flocculation be prevented?

When particles of a suspension come close together they can form aggregates called flocculates which will settle more rapidly. To prevent that we often coat the particle with a charged surfactant. The charge (Zeta potential) acts to keep the particles separate and prevent flocculation.

Why is flocculation important?

Used water can contain significant amounts of suspended particulate matter, which often takes long to sediment. Flocculation expedites sedimentation and ensures efficient solid/liquid separation.

What is difference between flocculation and Deflocculation?

The key difference between flocculation and deflocculation is that flocculation is the formation of flocs by the clumping of fine particles, whereas deflocculation is the dispersion of flocs to form a stable colloid. Flocculation refers to the formation of clumps from fine particles in a colloid.

What is the other name of Deflocculation?

What is another word for Deflocculation? flocculation. deflocculation and flocculation. coagulation.

Can you make slip with wet clay?

The process of slaking clay to make it into slip is a simple one. Step one is to have a 5-gallon bucket filled 60-75% with your bone-dry clay then add water until it’s a few inches below the rim (figure 1). Let it slake for 24 hours then mix it by hand a little with a stick (figure 2).

Which are the flocculating agents in soil?

In soils, the flocculation process concerns mostly the clay particles present. Clay particles usually possess net negative charge and therefore they electrostatically attract positively charged ions, such as Ca²⁺ cations, which form bridges, holding the particles together.

Why does my clay smell?

When clay is stinky, though, it’s usually good, since that smell only comes when the clay has spent some time in the wet condition. If your clay stinks, that’s a good thing. It means there’s bacteria in it, living on the organic matter in it.

What causes soil dispersion?

What causes soil dispersion? Soils often disperse when they are sodic, which means they contain enough sodium to interfere with the structural stability of the soil.

What is the difference between flocculant and coagulant?

Depending on the charge and chemical composition of your wastewater, flocculants can either be used on their own or in combination with coagulants. Flocculants differ from coagulants in that they are often polymers, whereas coagulants are typically salts.

Is mold in clay dangerous?

It’s true; people can have mold reactions to clay that has mold in it. We’ve heard about several potters that have had allergic reactions to mold in clay. Usually for it to kick up, though, there has to be visible mold—such as you get when a bag of moist clay has been hanging around for a fair amount of time.

Is flocculation good for soil?

Soil aggregates are cemented clusters of sand, silt, and clay particles. Flocculation is important because water moves mostly in large pores between aggregates. Also, plant roots grow mainly between aggregates.

Is Vinegar a Deflocculant?

Vinegar is often used in ceramic slurries to change the viscosity (thicken it). While there are more effective flocculants (e.g. calcium chloride, epsom salts), vinegar is popular among potters simply because it is so available.

Can you apply slip to bone dry clay?

When slip is applied to bone dry clay, one part of the pottery will be much wetter than the next. As such slip won’t stay liquid and doesn’t create the liquid soup for clay particles to move about in. So, generally slip is not used to join pieces of bone dry clay.

How does vinegar affect clay?

The acidity of the vinegar breaks down the clay a bit, and makes it sticky. Some artists use vinegar straight from the bottle, or add vinegar to clay instead of water to make a joining slip. All these methods work to create a join that is stronger than water or slip alone.