 |
|
|
|
|
| How is glazing related to chemistry? | ||||
| Performing an experiment in chemistry class is a lot like making a glaze. Certain chemicals react with each other while others do not, specific amounts of chemicals need to be measured and added in specific ratios in order to make a glaze of perfect substance. Before you can calculate glazes you must know the atomic mass of the elements. The elements in glazes, however, rarlely exist in pure forms but rather in compounds. A potter is mainly concerned with oxides which are produced when different elements become chemically combined with oxygen. Ceramic materials vary so widely in mass, in order to calculate the chemical composition of a glaze you cannot just take the grams of the material, you must find the molecular mass of the material. A potter also has to know how to figure out a percentage because a percentage has to be figured out for every chemical that is added to a glaze. All glazes are made up of elements or compounds in specific ratios which is why glazing and chemistry are so closely connected. |
||||