FIRE BRICKS

A fire brick, firebrick, or refractory brick is a block of refractory ceramic material used in
lining furnaces, kilns, fireboxes, and fireplaces. A refractory brick is built primarily to
withstand high temperature, but will also usually have a low thermal conductivity for
greater energy efficiency. Usually dense firebricks are used in applications with extreme
mechanical, chemical, or thermal stresses, such as the inside of a wood-fired kiln or a furnace,
which is subject to abrasion from wood, fluxing from ash or slag, and high temperatures. In
other, less harsh situations, such as in an electric or natural gas fired kiln, more porous bricks,
commonly known as "kiln bricks" are a better choice. They are weaker, but they are much
lighter, easier to form, and insulate far better than dense bricks.

PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES

 Refractoriness- Refractoriness is indicated in terms of pyrometric cone equivalent

(PCE) value which indicates the temperature of softening the refractory. PCE should
be well above the operating temperature. As inner end of the refractory wall is at higher
temperature compare to the outer end, therefore, unless the brick melts away
completely, it can often be used to withstand a temperature higher than its softening
temperature. The outer end will be at a lower temperature and still in a solid state, thus
giving strength.
 Strength- Strength under the combined effect of temperature and load is an important
factor, particularly in taller furnaces, the refractory has to support a heavy load.
Refractory must be strong enough to resist physical wetting away and to take load.
Refractoriness under load is an important consideration because usually a refractory
fails at a lower temperature when subjected to load because some crystals which have
become fluidic act as a lubricant and deformation becomes easier when subjected to
load.
 Specific gravity- Specific gravity reflects true porosity of refractory. Porosity increases
with increase in bulk density. It is also a criterion while buying the raw material because
raw materials of higher specific gravity will give fewer bricks or article per unit weight.
Eventually increases the production cost. Refractory material in powdered form is used
for making furnace lining or for repairs. Lesser weight of a material with lower specific
gravity will be required for this purpose. Materials of lower specific gravity are also
preferable because bricks in the lower part of a tall structure will not be subjected to a
heavy load
 Porosity and slag permeability- If the refractory has open pores the gases and slags will
enter the material more easily and to a greater depth and may react and reduce the life
of the refractory.
 Thermal expansion- In furnace design, allowance has to be made for thermal expansion.
This becomes a very important factor if the refractory is subjected to rapid changes in
temperature as a furnace door which is, on opening, is suddenly exposed to air at room
temperature. Within a single brick in the wall there may be a temperature drop of a few
hundred degrees from the hot face to the cold face. This causes differences in thermal
expansion in different sections of the brick. There may be changes in the internal
structures of the material with the result that there is expansion in volume. All these
result in the development of high internal stresses.
  Thermal conductivity- It is important factor if the refractory is subjected to rapid
changes in temperature. Thermal conductivity should be low so that the heat of the
furnace may not be lost. Exceptions to this rule are coke over walls, mulle furnaces and
retorts which is heated form outside. They should be made of refractories of high
thermal conductivity. To prevent heat loss sometimes a refractory is backed by an
insulate material like asbestos. The life of refractories is shorter which are constantly
maintained at high temperature.
 Electrical conductivity- It should be low for electrical furnaces. Except graphite, all
other refractories are bad conductors of electricity. The electrical resistivity of the
refractories should drop rapidly with increase in temperature.
 Chemical composition- The chemical composition of the refractory should be such that
the surrounding do not chemically attack the refractory and corrode it.

1. Bulk Density : 1915 Kg/m³

2. Modulus of Rupture : 5 MPa

3. Permanent Linear Change on reheating 5 hrs. @ 1400°C : -0.35%

4. Cold Compressive Strength : 15 MPa

5. Thermal Conductivity @ 750°C : 1.01 W/m.°K

6. Apparent Porosity : 28%

HISTORY

Fire brick was first invented in 1822 by William Weston Young in the Neath Valley of Wales.
Young's experience of firing ceramics, together with his familiarity with the region as a local
surveyor and his amateur interests in geology enabled him to conceive of a heat-proof, blast-
furnace brick, using silica found in large deposits at the head of the Neath Valley. The process
of "vitrifying" the walls of a ceramic brick-built furnace had been patented by William Harry,
of the Swansea Valley in 1817, but Young's solution was to build the whole furnace from a
"silica firebrick," made with a 1% addition of lime, to bind the blue-grey "clay" of the Dinas
rock. The idea being that the interior of the blast furnace would vitrify and be vastly more
durable and ultimately economical, than a mere veneer of silica within a comparatively
fragile ceramic shell. Young made early experiments with the recipe and fired his trial bricks
at the Nantgarw Pottery kilns, while he and Pardoe finished the Billingsley porcelain for sale
between 1820 and 1821 when he finalised his recipe.
APPLICATIONS

 The silica firebricks that line steel-making furnaces are used at temperatures up to
1648°C (3000°F), which would melt many other types of ceramic, and in fact part of
the silica firebrick liquefies.
 High-temperature Reusable Surface Insulation (HRSI), a material with the same
composition, was used in the insulating tiles of the Space Shuttle.
 Non-ferrous metallurgical processes use basic refractory bricks because the slags used
in these processes readily dissolve the “acidic” silica bricks.
 The most common basic refractory bricks used in smelting non-ferrous metal
concentrates are “chrome-magnesite” or “magnesite-chrome” bricks
 Silica bricks are the most common type of bricks used for the inner lining of furnaces
and incinerators
 As the inner lining is usually of sacrificial nature, fire bricks of higher alumina content
may be employed to lengthen the duration between re-linings. Very often cracks can be
seen in this sacrificial inner lining shortly after being put into operation. They revealed
more expansion joints should have been put in the first place, but these now become
expansion joints themselves and are of no concern as long as structural integrity is not
affected.
 Silicon carbide, with high abrasive strength, is a popular material for hearths
of incinerators and cremators
 Common red clay brick are used for chimneys and wood-fired ovens.

IMPORT EXPORT DATA

The top Indian exporters of Fire Bricks are:

 Ms Raj Ceramics
 Dalmia Cement Bharat Limited
 Bronx Process Engineering Pltd
 Pritam International
 Vikas Sales

The top Indian importers of Fire Bricks are:

 Eid Parry India Ltd

 Tata Chemicals Limited
 Jsc Krasnoarmeysk Silics Brick Plant
 Binani Cement Limited
 Hyundai Motor India Ltd
IMPORT DATA

Import Country - China

Discharge Port is Kolkata or Chennai
Price is Around ₹ 56 to ₹ 77 per kg

EXPORT DATA

Export Data - Kenya, Bangladesh, Sudan

Price is Variable for different country and quantity

For Ex:-

Bangladesh for a Bag ₹388

Sudan for a Piece ₹36
Kenya for a Piece ₹24

Production Capacity

Quantity: 550000 Nos. (per annum)

Value : Rs. 1,48,00,000 (per annum)

Company-

Small Industries Service Institute

Rajajinagar Industrial Estate,
Bangalore

MAJOR MANUFACTURERS

Ajith Kumar Associates

JR Refractory
MS Raj Ceramics
Manufacturing process

Refractory manufacturing involves four processes: raw material processing, forming, firing,
and final processing. Raw material processing consists of crushing and grinding raw materials,
followed if necessary by size classification and raw materials calcining and drying. The
processed raw material then may be dry-mixed with other minerals and chemical compounds,
packaged, and shipped as product. All of these processes are not required for some refractory
products.

The fundamentals of refractory bricks manufacturing have not changed over time. However,
technological advancements have made contemporary brick plants substantially more efficient
and have improved the overall quality of the products. The manufacture of these refractories is
based on knowing which combination of chemical compounds and minerals will give the
produced refractories its needed properties such as refractoriness, thermal stability, corrosion
resistance, thermal expansion, and other important qualities. A more complete knowledge of
raw materials and their properties, better control of firing, improved kiln designs used for firing
of green refractories and more advanced mechanization have all contributed to the
advancement of the refractory brick industry.

Raw materials
Well selected raw materials are the crucial part for the development and the production of
satisfactory refractory products. The raw material properties influence directly and indirectly
important refractory properties. Raw materials have to match at least the following six different
properties for the production of high performance refractory products.
 Sufficient initial grain size
 Density / porosity
 Main mineral / oxide share
 Limits in reducible oxides and / or fluxing oxides
 Molar balance of important oxides
 Crystal size of the main mineral / oxide

Raw material processing

Raw material processing for refractory manufacture consists of the following steps.
 Crushing and grinding- The crushing and grinding operation is carried out in the
primary, secondary and fine crushing/grinding units to meet the requirements of
different grain size of raw materials according to the desired granulometry for the
refractory batch composition. For primary crushing and for a minimum grain size of
10-12 mm, jaw crushers and gyratory crushers are normally used. The roller crusher,
disk crusher, impact mill, and various types of hammer mills are used for secondary
crushing for achieving a minimum grain size of approximately 4 mm. Pulverisers of
different types such as attribution mill, ball mill, rod mill, and tube mill etc. are used
for fine grinding up to a minimum size of 200 mesh. Vibrating mill, jet mill, micronizer
etc. are used for some special products, which require super fine powders of some of
the raw materials of size up to 10 microns or even less.
 Sieving or grading- The crushed and ground raw materials are sieved or graded into
different size fractions as per the requirement of the refractories under production. This
is carried out by passing them through vibrating or rotary screens or air classifiers. In
case of a vibrating screen, a set of screens, as desired, are fixed in the vibrating frame
so that several fractions are obtained in operation.
  Magnetic separation of tramp iron- Free iron or tramp iron coming in the crushed and
ground materials are removed from material by magnetic separation. Pieces of
tramp irons are removed with the help of the magnetic separator which is either pulley
or suspended type with either permanent or electromagnet. The crushed materials from
which the iron is to be removed are either placed on a moving belt passing over
magnetic rollers or allowed to fall directly on rotating magnetic rollers in single or in
series, one above the other, for removing the iron.
 Batch weighing- Refractory bricks are produced in batches. A batch of raw materials
consists of fine, medium and coarse fractions in required quantities (ratio). Batch
weighing cars are normally employed to draw accurate quantity of required material in
proper size fractions from the storage bins. In case of small batches, it is normally done
manually using weighing machines.
 Batch mixing- Weighed materials are mixed thoroughly employing suitable mixer.
Several type of mixers are available for the mixing of materials in a batch. These are
pan mixer, trough mixer, drum mixer, pug mill, and counter current mixer etc.
Normally, for semi dry and plastic forming process, the batches for fire clay refractory
are mixed in trough mixer and pug mills. The counter current type mixer is used
for producing mixture for dry processing of high alumina or basic refractory in
particular where moisture content is less than 10 %.

Shaping or forming
The refractory bricks are formed by various methods which include either hand moulding or in
different types of forming and moulding machines which includes presses. The type of
moulding adopted depends on the shapes and sizes of the refractory and its quantity. Broadly
moulding / pressing methods can be divided into three categories namely (i) semi dry pressing
or stiff mud process, (ii) plastic moulding or soft mud process, and (iii) dry press process. The
moulded brick is called green brick.
In the stiff mud or extrusion process, water is in the range of 10 % to 15 % is mixed to produce
plasticity. After mixing, the refractory mix goes through a deairing chamber that maintains a
vacuum of 375 mm to 725 mm of mercury. Deairing removes air holes and bubbles, giving the
refractory mix increased workability and plasticity, resulting in greater strength. After this, the
refractory mix is extruded through a die to produce a column of the mix. As the mix column
leaves the die, textures or surface coatings may be applied. An automatic cutter then slices
through the mix column to create the individual brick. Cutter spacings and die sizes must be
carefully calculated to compensate for normal shrinkage that occurs during drying and firing.
The majority of refractory bricks are normally produced by the extrusion process.
The soft mud or plastic moulding process is particularly suitable for refractory mix containing
too much water to be extruded by the stiff mud process. Refractory mixes are mixed to contain
20 % to 30 % of water and then formed into shapes in moulds. To prevent refractory mix from
sticking, the moulds are lubricated with either sand or water to produce ‘sand-struck’ or ‘water-
struck’ brick. Bricks can be produced in this manner by machine or by hand.
The dry pressing is achieved under high pressure in heavy duty presses or even by jolting and
pressing action particularly for fine grain mixtures. This process is mainly suited to refractory
mixes of very low plasticity. Refractory mixes are mixed with a minimal amount of water (up
to 10 %), then pressed into steel moulds under pressures from 3.4 MPa to 10.3 MPa by
hydraulic presses or compressed air rams.
Drying and firing
Wet bricks from moulding or cutting machines contain a large quantity of moisture, depending
upon the shaping process. Before the firing process begins, most of this water is to be
evaporated in dryer chambers at temperatures ranging from about 40 C to 200 C to bring
down the moisture content to a level which is preferably less than 1 %. The extent of drying
time, which varies with refractory mixes, generally is between 24 to 48 hours. Although heat
may be generated specifically for dryer chambers, it usually is supplied from the exhaust heat
of kilns to maximize thermal efficiency. In all cases, heat and humidity must be carefully
regulated to avoid cracking in the green bricks. The larger bricks which are difficult to handle
are dried on hot floor that are heated from underneath by waste flue gases or steam.
The final operation in the production of refractory bricks and shapes is their firing. During
firing, the bricks are heated to the desired temperature and kept at that temperature for certain
amount of time for soaking to properly mature the brick.
There are several types of furnaces/kilns which are used. The furnaces/kilns can broadly be
divided into intermittent, semi continuous and continuous. The most common type is a tunnel
kiln, followed by intermittent kilns. Fuel may be oil, gas or coal, or a combination of these
fuels.

The firing of the bricks is done between 10 and 40 hours, depending upon kiln type and other
variables. In the tunnel kiln, bricks loaded onto kiln cars, pass through various temperature
zones as they travel through the tunnel. The heat conditions in each zone are carefully
controlled, and the kiln is operated continuously.

Firing may be divided into five general stages namely (i) final drying (evaporating free water),
(ii) dehydration, (iii) oxidation, (iv) vitrification, and (v) flashing or reduction firing. All
except flashing are associated with rising temperatures in the kiln. Although the actual
temperatures differs with the type of refractory mix.

Refractory mix generally softens slowly and melts or vitrifies gradually when subjected to
rising temperatures. Vitrification allows the mix to become a hard, solid mass with relatively
low absorption. Melting takes place in three stages namely (i) incipient fusion, when the mix
particles become sufficiently soft to stick together in a mass when cooled, (ii) vitrification,
when extensive fluxing occurs and the mass becomes tight, solid and non-absorbent, and (iii)
viscous fusion, when the mix mass breaks down and becomes molten, leading to a deformed
brick. The key to the firing process is to control the temperature in the kiln so that incipient
fusion and partial vitrification occur but viscous fusion is avoided. The rate of temperature
change must be carefully controlled and is dependent on the raw materials, as well as the size
and curing of the bricks being produced.

After the temperature has peaked and is maintained for a prescribed time, the cooling process
begins. Cooling time rarely exceeds 10 hours for tunnel kilns and from 5 to 24 hours in
intermittent kilns. Cooling is an important stage in brick manufacturing because the rate of
cooling has a direct effect on the colour of the bricks. After the cooling the bricks are inspected,
sorted, graded and packaged for dispatch.
Classification

 Acid refractories- The prime ingredient for acid refractory is silica. Acid refractory
have high temperature loadbearing capacity and are used in the arched roofs of steel
and glass making furnaces at temperatures as high as 16500C. At this temperature small
portion of the brick will actually exist as a liquid. Alumina should be kept at 0.2 to 1.0%
by weight because it adversely effect on the performance of these refractories. These
refractory materials are resistant to acid slags that are rich in silica. But they are readily
attacked by basic slags composed of CaO and / or MgO, there so contact with these
oxides should be avoided.

Sr. No. Acid refractories Fusion temperature

1. Silica(SiO2) 17000C
2. Aluminium silica (46% Al2O3 + 54% SiO2) 17800C
3. Alumina (Al2O3) 20500C
4. Silmanite (63%Al2O3 + 37%SiO2) 19000C

 Basic refractories- The main constituent of basic refractories is magnesia (MgO), along
with calcium, chromium and iron compounds. The presence of silica is harmful for use
in high temperature performance; Basic refractories are especially resistant to attack by
slags containing high concentrations of MgO and CaO, and find extensive use in some
steel making open hearth furnaces.

Sr. No. Basic refractories Fusion temperature

1. Magnesia 2200 C
2. Bauxite 1800 C
3. Dolomite 1500 C

 Neutral refractories/ special refractories- The special refractories are relatively

expensive due to use of high-purity oxide materials and very little porosity. Alumina,
silica, magnesia, beryllia (BeO), zirconia (ZrO2) and mullite (3AI2O3.2SiO2), as well
as carbide compounds, in addition to carbon and graphite are used for manufacture of
special refractories. Silicon carbide (SiC2) has been used for electrical resistance
elements, as a crucible material, and in internal furnace components. As carbon and
graphite are susceptible to oxidation at temperatures in excess of about 8000C, they
find limited application in spite of refractory characteristics.

Sr. No. Neutral refractories Fusion temperature

1. Chromite 2180 C
2. Graphite 3000 C
3. Silicon carbide 2700 C
4. Zirconia 2200 C
Composition of silica and basic refractory bricks:

Composition of fireclays and high alumina bricks:

Characteristics of refractories

 Can withstand high temperatures without being fused

 Crucibles and furnace sides and bottoms containing molten metal are made up of
refractories
 Use as ladles for pouring metal into the mould
 Constitute furnace walls and roof and thus minimize heat losses
Properties of various refractory bricks
REFERENCES

https://www.zauba.com/export-REFRACTORY+FIRE+BRICKS-hs-code.html
https://www.zauba.com/import-b622+refractory+bricks-hs-code.html