Ceramic wear tile and method of using same

Abstract

The present subject matter provides colored wear tiles for use in optical sorting apparatuses and related methods that separate an associated material into a desired product and an undesired product. The colored wear tiles have a color and/or lightness value that permeates the entire body of the wear tile and sufficiently differs from the color and/or lightness of the associated material in order to allow the colored wear tile, or portions or pieces thereof, that may mix with the associated material, to be separated from the desired product by the sorting apparatus.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ; 
 the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile; 
 the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5; 
 the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; 
 the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees; and 
 the colored wear tile is brown and is produced by firing a composition at or above about 2500° F. from about 45 minutes to about 90 minutes, the composition comprising prior to firing: 
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. MnO 2  from about 0.25 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 c. TiO 2  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 2.5 wt. %, 
 d. Fe 3 O 4  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 2.5 wt. %, 
 e. clay from about 0 wt. % to about 10 wt. %, 
 f. Al 2 SiO 5  from about 0.01 wt. % to about 8.0 wt. %, 
 g. talc from about 0 wt. % to about 2.5 wt. %, 
 h. dispersant from about 0 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 i. defoamer from about 0 wt. % to about 1.0 wt. %, 
 j. binder from about 0.1 wt. % to about 10 wt. %, and 
 k. calcium stearate from about 0 wt. % to about 4.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       2. The colored wear tile according to  claim 1 , wherein the composition comprises prior to firing:
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. MnO 2  from about 0.5 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 c. TiO 2  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 1.5 wt. %, 
 d. Fe 3 O 4  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 1.5 wt. %, 
 e. clay from about 1.0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 f. Al 2 SiO 5  from about 0.5 wt. % to about 6.0 wt. %, 
 g. talc from about 0.2 wt. % to about 1.5 wt. %, 
 h. dispersant from about 0.2 wt. % to about 0.6 wt. %, 
 i. defoamer from about 0.05 wt. % to about 0.2 wt. %, 
 j. binder from about 0.5 wt. % to about 8.0 wt. %, and 
 k. calcium stearate from about 0.3 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       3. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ; 
 the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile; 
 the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5; 
 the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; 
 the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees; and 
 the colored wear tile is pink and is produced by firing a composition at or above about 2500° F. from about 45 minutes to about 90 minutes, the composition comprising prior to firing: 
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. CaF 2  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 4.0 wt. %, 
 c. Cr 2 O 3  from about 0.05 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 d. clay from about 0 wt. % to about 4.5 wt. %, 
 e. talc from about 0 wt. % to about 4.0 wt. %, 
 f. tannic acid from about 0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 g. dispersant from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 h. defoamer from about 0 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 i. binder from about 0 wt. % to about 10.0 wt. %, and 
 j. calcium stearate from about 0 wt. % to about 4.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       4. The colored wear tile according to  claim 3 , wherein the composition comprises prior to firing:
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. CaF 2  from about 0.5 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 c. Cr 2 O 3  from about 0.1 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 d. clay from about 1.0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 e. talc from about 0.2 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 f. tannic acid from about 0.05 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 g. dispersant from about 0.2 wt. % to about 1.0 wt. %, 
 h. defoamer from about 0.02 wt. % to about 0.2 wt. %, 
 i. binder from about 0.7 wt. % to about 7.5 wt. %, and 
 j. calcium stearate from about 0.1 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       5. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ; 
 the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile; 
 the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5; 
 the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; 
 the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees; and 
 the colored wear tile is pink and is produced by firing a composition at or above about 2500° F. from about 45 minutes to about 90 minutes, the composition comprising prior to firing: 
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. Al 2 SiO 5  from about 0.01 wt. % to about 8.0 wt. %, 
 c. Cr 2 O 3  from about 0.05 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 d. clay from about 0 wt. % to about 10.0 wt. %, 
 e. talc from about 0 wt. % to about 4.0 wt. %, 
 f. Stonelite (CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 -Fe 2 O 3 ) or dolomite (CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 ) from about 0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 g. dispersant from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 h. defoamer from about 0 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 i. binder from about 0 wt. % to about 10.0 wt. %, and 
 j. calcium stearate from about 0 wt. % to about 4.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       6. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ; 
 the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile; 
 the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5; 
 the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; 
 the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees; and 
 the colored wear tile is blue and is produced by firing a composition at or above about 2500° F. from about 45 minutes to about 90 minutes, the composition comprising prior to firing: 
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. Al 2 SiO 5  from about 0.5 wt. % to about 8.0 wt. %, 
 c. clay from about 0 wt. % to about 10.0 wt. %, 
 d. talc from about 0 wt. % to about 4.0 wt. %, 
 e. Stonelite (CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 -Fe 2 O 3 ) or dolomite (CaMg(CO 3 ) 2 ) from about 0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %, 
 f. CoO from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 g. dispersant from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 h. defoamer from about 0 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 i. binder from about 0 wt. % to about 5.0 wt. %, and 
 j. calcium stearate from about 0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       7. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ; 
 the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile; 
 the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5; 
 the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; 
 the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees; and 
 the colored wear tile is black and is produced by firing a composition at or above about 2500° F. from about 45 minutes to about 90 minutes, the composition comprising prior to firing: 
 a. Al 2 O 3  from about 75 wt. % to about 98 wt. %, 
 b. TiO 2  from about 0.5 wt. % to about 5.0 wt. %, 
 c. CoO from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 d. Fe 3 O 4  from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 e. NiO 2  from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 f. Kaolin clay (Al 2 Si 2 O 5 (OH) 4 ) from about 1.0 wt. % to about 8.0 wt. %, 
 g. dispersant from about 0 wt. % to about 3.0 wt. %, 
 h. defoamer from about 0 wt. % to about 2.0 wt. %, 
 i. binder from about 0 wt. % to about 5.0 wt. %, and 
 j. calcium stearate from about 0 wt. % to about 3.5 wt. %. 
 
     
     
       8. A colored wear tile having a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile, the wear tile exhibiting at least one of the following (i) the colored wear tile having a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5, and (ii) a lightness of about 90 or less as measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees;
 wherein a color or lightness gradient is present through the colored wear tile from one surface to another surface;   wherein the colored wear tile has a shape selected from the group consisting of a square shape, a rectangular shape, a hexagonal shape, and combinations thereof.   
     
     
       9. The colored wear tile of claim 8 wherein the tile has a thickness of less than 0.60 inches. 
     
     
       10. The colored wear tile of claim 8 wherein the tile is pink. 
     
     
       11. The colored wear tile of claim 8 wherein the tile is blue. 
     
     
       12. The colored wear tile of claim 8 wherein the tile is brown. 
     
     
       13. The colored wear tile of claim 8 wherein the tile is black. 
     
     
       14. A colored wear tile (i) having a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile, (ii) having a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5, (iii) having a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches, and (iv) a lightness of about 90 or less as measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees;
 wherein a color or lightness gradient is present through the colored wear tile from one surface to another surface;   wherein the colored wear tile has a shape selected from the group consisting of a square shape, a rectangular shape, a hexagonal shape, and combinations thereof.   
     
     
       15. The colored wear tile of claim 14 wherein the tile is pink. 
     
     
       16. The colored wear tile of claim 14 wherein the tile is blue. 
     
     
       17. The colored wear tile of claim 14 wherein the tile is brown. 
     
     
       18. The colored wear tile of claim 14 wherein the tile is black. 
     
     
       19. A colored wear tile for inhibiting wear to a surface, the wear being associated to contact with a moving material, wherein:
 the colored wear tile comprises prior to firing, non-volatile components comprising at least 85 wt. % Al 2 O 3 ;   the colored wear tile has a color that permeates substantially an entire mass of the colored wear tile;   the colored wear tile has a Vickers hardness from about 900HV5 to about 1350HV5;   the colored wear tile has a thickness of less than about 0.60 inches; and   the colored wear tile has a lightness of about 90 or less measured with a CIE D65 illuminant at 10 degrees;   wherein a color or lightness gradient is present through the colored wear tile from one surface to another surface;   wherein the colored wear tile has a shape selected from the group consisting of a square shape, a rectangular shape, a hexagonal shape, and combinations thereof.