An easy-to-clean glaze, sanitary ware and a method of making the same

Abstract

This invention discloses an easy-to-clean glaze, sanitary ware, and its preparation method, relating to the field of sanitary ware technology. The easy-to-clean glaze of this invention comprises the following raw materials in parts by weight: 15-22 parts quartz powder, 8-15 parts wollastonite, 25-40 parts potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts lithium carbonate, and 15-30 parts boron frit; the melting temperature of the boron frit is 1050-1160℃, and the boron trioxide content in the boron frit is greater than or equal to 10% by weight. The easy-to-clean glaze of this invention can significantly reduce the roughness of the glaze surface, making the glaze smooth and highly flat, and making the glaze surface less prone to staining, thus exhibiting excellent easy-to-clean performance and solving the problem of easy staining that still exists in existing easy-to-clean glazes during use.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of sanitary ware technology, and in particular to an easy-to-clean glaze, sanitary ware, and a method for preparing the same. Background Technology

[0002] With social development and improved living conditions, people's pursuit of beauty and demands for a healthy lifestyle are increasing, leading to higher requirements for sanitary ware in hotels, restaurants, and homes. Existing sanitary ware glazes are prone to attracting dirt and are difficult to clean. This is because although the glaze appears smooth and glossy from a distance, close inspection or microscopic observation reveals numerous tiny pinholes and pits on the surface. During use, substances such as limescale, fatty acids, and soap suds easily accumulate in the unevenness or micropores of the glaze under various physical and chemical forces, including capillary forces, van der Waals forces, and hydrogen bonds, causing contamination and making cleaning difficult.

[0003] Currently, to make sanitary ware easy to clean, an easy-clean glaze is usually applied to the surface of the base white glaze. However, existing easy-clean glazes are generally composed of raw materials or boron frit, resulting in poor cleaning performance and the problem of easy dirt absorption during use. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In response to the problems raised in the background art, the purpose of this invention is to provide an easy-to-clean glaze that can significantly reduce the roughness of the glaze surface, making the glaze surface smooth and highly flat, making the glaze surface less prone to dirt accumulation, and possessing excellent easy-to-clean properties, thus solving the problem that existing easy-to-clean glazes still easily accumulate dirt during use.

[0005] Another object of the present invention is to provide a sanitary ware that uses the above-mentioned easy-to-clean glaze, so that the surface of the sanitary ware is not easy to absorb dirt and has the effect of being easy to clean.

[0006] Another object of the present invention is a method for preparing sanitary ware, for preparing the above-mentioned sanitary ware.

[0007] An easy-to-clean glaze comprises the following raw materials in parts by weight: 15-22 parts quartz powder, 8-15 parts wollastonite, 25-40 parts potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts lithium carbonate, and 15-30 parts boron frit.

[0008] The melting temperature of the boron fused block is 1050–1160°C, and the boron trioxide content in the boron fused block is greater than 10% by mass percentage.

[0009] Preferably, the chemical composition of the boron ingot, calculated as a percentage by mass, is as follows:

[0010] SiO2: 62-66%, Al2O3: 8-12%, Fe2O3: 0.005-0.02%, TiO2: 0.005-0.02%, CaO: 6-9%, MgO: 0.5-3%, K2O: 3-5%, Na2O: 0.7-3%, ZrO2: 0.5-0.9%, ZnO: 2-5%, B2O3: 10-12%, and BaO: 0.5-1%, with the balance being loss on ignition.

[0011] Preferably, the easy-to-clean glaze further includes 10-18 parts of nano zinc oxide and 0.01-0.3 parts of silver ion antibacterial material, calculated by weight.

[0012] Preferably, the easy-to-clean glaze further includes 0.001 to 0.002 parts of food-grade colorant by weight.

[0013] Preferably, the content of particles smaller than 10 μm in the easy-clean glaze is 70-90% by mass percentage.

[0014] A sanitary ware includes a body, a white glaze layer, and an easy-clean glaze layer, wherein the white glaze layer and the easy-clean glaze layer are sequentially disposed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside.

[0015] The easy-clean glaze layer is made by firing the aforementioned easy-clean glaze.

[0016] A method for preparing sanitary ware, comprising the following steps:

[0017] (1) Prepare the easy-cleaning glaze according to any one of claims 1-5 according to the specified proportions;

[0018] (2) Apply white glaze to the surface of the blank, spray easy-to-clean glaze onto the surface of the white glaze, and form a wet glaze layer on the surface of the white glaze to obtain a semi-finished product.

[0019] (3) The semi-finished product is fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer are formed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside, thus obtaining sanitary ware.

[0020] Preferably, the specific gravity of the easy-to-clean glaze is 1.5 to 1.6 g / mL, and the fluidity is 210 to 300°.

[0021] Preferably, in step (2), an easy-to-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze using a glazing robot, and the operation method is as follows:

[0022] White glaze is applied to the surface of the blank. After the water gloss on the surface of the white glaze disappears, an easy-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze to form a wet glaze layer. The thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer are tested, and the glazing program is adjusted point-to-point by computer programming to adjust the thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer to the standard range, thus obtaining a semi-finished product. The semi-finished product is then fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer are formed sequentially from the inside to the outside on the surface of the blank, thus obtaining sanitary ware.

[0023] The coating thickness of the easy-to-clean glaze is 0.1–0.2 mm;

[0024] The thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer is 0.07–0.15 mm.

[0025] Preferably, the glazing parameters of the glazing robot are as follows: glaze pressure is 0.3-0.6 MPa, air pressure is 0.4-0.6 MPa, fan-shaped value is 0.15-0.3 MPa, atomization value is 0.3-0.6 MPa, and glaze output is 500-600 mL / 30 s.

[0026] The above technical solution has the following beneficial effects: This technical solution adds a highly efficient fluxing material—lithium carbonate—to the easy-to-clean glaze formulation system, as well as boron frit with a low melting temperature (1050-1160℃) and high B2O3 content. The introduction of lithium carbonate can significantly reduce the expansion coefficient of the easy-to-clean glaze, lower the firing temperature of the easy-to-clean glaze, allow the glaze to flatten during high-temperature firing, greatly reduce the roughness of the glaze surface, make the glaze surface smooth and highly flat, and less prone to dirt absorption, thereby achieving the effect of easy cleaning. Meanwhile, the boron frit added in this technical solution is a low-temperature boron frit containing boron, with a B2O3 content ≥10% and a melting temperature of 1050~1160℃. Since the firing temperature of sanitary ware is generally 1200~1220℃, and B2O3 has a strong fluxing effect and is one of the main components of borosilicate glass, adding the low-temperature boron frit containing boron in this technical solution to the easy-clean glaze can play a role in solidification and strong fluxing, forming a glass phase during firing, thereby further improving the smoothness of the glaze surface and achieving a better easy-clean effect. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described below with reference to specific embodiments.

[0028] An easy-to-clean glaze comprises the following raw materials in parts by weight: 15-22 parts quartz powder, 8-15 parts wollastonite, 25-40 parts potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts lithium carbonate, and 15-30 parts boron frit.

[0029] The melting temperature of the boron fused block is 1050–1160°C, and the boron trioxide content in the boron fused block is greater than or equal to 10% by mass percentage.

[0030] To address the issue of existing easy-clean glazes accumulating dirt due to their poor cleaning performance, this technical solution incorporates lithium carbonate, a highly efficient fluxing agent, and boron flocs with a low melting temperature (1050–1160℃) and high B2O3 content into the easy-clean glaze formulation. The introduction of lithium carbonate significantly reduces the coefficient of thermal expansion and the firing temperature of the easy-clean glaze, allowing it to flatten during high-temperature firing. This greatly reduces surface roughness, resulting in a smooth and even surface that is less prone to dirt accumulation, thus achieving an easy-clean effect. Meanwhile, the boron frit added in this technical solution is a low-temperature boron frit containing boron, with a B2O3 content ≥10% and a melting temperature of 1050~1160℃. Since the firing temperature of sanitary ware is generally 1200~1220℃, and B2O3 has a strong fluxing effect and is one of the main components of borosilicate glass, adding the low-temperature boron frit containing boron in this technical solution to the easy-clean glaze can play a role in solidification and strong fluxing, forming a glass phase during firing, thereby further improving the smoothness of the glaze surface and achieving a better easy-clean effect.

[0031] This technical solution utilizes a combination of raw materials (i.e., components other than boron frit) and boron frit in its easy-to-clean glaze. By balancing the formulation, the shrinkage of the body and the glaze layer can be synchronized. Since the boron frit is a glassy substance, it exhibits minimal high-temperature shrinkage. Furthermore, by adding boron-containing boron frit, a boron element with strong fluxing properties is introduced into the formulation system. This ensures that during firing, the shrinkage of the body, base glaze, and easy-to-clean glaze is nearly synchronized, preventing the problem of mismatched internal stress caused by large local differences in shrinkage rates.

[0032] Specifically, this technology applies lithium carbonate to easy-to-clean glazes, which has a dual effect on the coefficient of expansion and fluxing effect, effectively reducing surface tension and significantly improving flatness, thereby enhancing the easy-to-clean effect.

[0033] Further explanation: The chemical composition of the boron ingot, calculated as a percentage by mass, is as follows:

[0034] SiO2: 62-66%, Al2O3: 8-12%, Fe2O3: 0.005-0.02%, TiO2: 0.005-0.02%, CaO: 6-9%, MgO: 0.5-3%, K2O: 3-5%, Na2O: 0.7-3%, ZrO2: 0.5-0.9%, ZnO: 2-5%, B2O3: 10-12%, and BaO: 0.5-1%, with the balance being loss on ignition.

[0035] It is worth noting that the boron frit prepared using the chemical composition of this technical solution has the advantages of high boron content and low melting temperature (1050-1160℃), which can play a strong fluxing role. Furthermore, since the boron frit in this technical solution has already been fired, the high-temperature chemical reaction between the elements within the boron frit itself has been completed. At high temperatures, it does not release gas but only melts and fuses other raw materials. At high temperatures, the boron frit itself is in a low-temperature borate glassy state, which can accelerate the high-temperature reaction process of the easy-to-clean glaze, thereby playing a role in solidification and fluxing. Therefore, this technical solution introduces boron into the formulation system by adding boron-containing boron frit, which can effectively solidify boron, a raw material that volatilizes at high temperatures. It has a good solidification effect on the introduced boron, avoiding high-temperature volatilization, thus ensuring that the boron frit has a strong fluxing effect, resulting in a smooth glaze surface with good easy-to-clean properties. If boron is added to the formulation system by adding boron-containing raw materials, the boron in the boron-containing raw materials will volatilize during firing, thus failing to achieve the solidification and fluxing effects.

[0036] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chemical composition (by mass percentage) of the boron ingot is as follows:

[0037] SiO2: 62.54%, Al2O3: 10.44%, Fe2O3: 0.01%, TiO2: 0.01%, CaO: 7.70%, MgO: 0.88%, K2O: 3.14%, Na2O: 0.98%, ZrO2: 0.64%, ZnO: 2.21%, B2O3: 10.9%, and BaO: 0.5%, with the balance being loss on ignition.

[0038] Further explanation: by weight, the easy-to-clean glaze also includes 10-18 parts of nano zinc oxide and 0.01-0.3 parts of silver ion antibacterial material.

[0039] It is worth noting that, calculated by mass parts, the raw materials of the easy-to-clean glaze in this technical solution include 15-22 parts of quartz powder, 8-15 parts of wollastonite, 25-40 parts of potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts of lithium carbonate, 15-30 parts of boron frit, 10-18 parts of nano zinc oxide, and 0.01-0.3 parts of silver ion antibacterial material. Calculated by mass percentage, the chemical composition of the easy-to-clean glaze in this technical solution includes 57-62% silicon dioxide, 6-9% aluminum oxide, 6-10% calcium oxide, 0-1% magnesium oxide, 2-5% potassium oxide, 1-4% sodium oxide, 10-18% zinc oxide, 2-6% lithium oxide, and 1-3% boron oxide. Because the amount of silver ion antibacterial material added is low, it is difficult to analyze when performing easy-to-clean glaze composition analysis. Therefore, the content of silver element is not recorded in the chemical composition of the above-mentioned easy-to-clean glaze. However, since this technical solution adds silver ion antibacterial material to the easy-to-clean glaze, through the synergistic effect of silver ion antibacterial material and nano zinc oxide, the easy-to-clean glaze has excellent antibacterial effect, with an antibacterial rate of over 99.9%.

[0040] Specifically, the silver ion antibacterial material used in this technical solution is nano-silver.

[0041] Further explanation: by weight, the easy-clean glaze also includes 0.001 to 0.002 parts of food-grade colorant.

[0042] It is worth noting that the uniformity of the easy-clean glaze application on the surface of sanitary ware will also affect the easy-cleaning effect of the glaze, as well as its antibacterial effect. If the application is uneven, the flatness of the glaze will be low, and the concave areas of the glaze will easily absorb dirt, resulting in poor easy-cleaning effect. At the same time, if the application is uneven, the antibacterial effect will be greatly reduced in areas where the glaze layer is thinner. Therefore, to further enhance the easy-cleaning and antibacterial effects of the easy-cleaning glaze in this technical solution, a food-grade colorant is added to the easy-cleaning glaze to give it color. During glazing, this creates a clear distinction between the easy-cleaning glaze and the base glaze (usually white) on the surface of the sanitary ware body. By observing the color difference of the glaze surface after spraying, the uniformity and thickness of the easy-cleaning glaze layer can be intuitively assessed. This provides significant guidance for confirming the programming effect of the robot glazing program and the quality of manual glazing, facilitating prediction and corresponding adjustments during glazing to ensure the spraying effect. Consequently, it ensures the uniformity of the antibacterial and easy-cleaning effects of the sanitary ware products, guaranteeing that the performance of the finished product meets the standards.

[0043] It is worth noting that the colorant used in this technical solution is a food-grade colorant, specifically a colored food additive that complies with the national food safety standard GB1886.217-2016. Examples include low-temperature food-grade colorants such as brilliant blue, carmine, fruit green, and grape purple. These low-temperature food-grade colorants allow for a direct assessment of the uniformity and thickness of the easy-to-clean glaze layer by observing the color difference on the glaze surface during glazing. This facilitates corresponding adjustments by the glazing robot, resulting in a uniform glazing effect. Furthermore, low-temperature food-grade colorants fade at around 300℃; therefore, the fading after firing will not affect the appearance or color of the finished product. Moreover, the use of food-grade colorants in this technical solution reduces harm to the human body during use and minimizes dust hazards during spray atomization.

[0044] To further clarify, the content of particles smaller than 10μm in the easy-clean glaze is 70-90% by mass percentage.

[0045] It is worth noting that in order to achieve the ideal state of glaze quality and easy-to-clean effect of robot spraying, it is necessary to control the content of particles smaller than 10μm in the easy-to-clean glaze to be 70-90%. At this particle size, the crystalline particles formed are more dense and fine, with low surface tension, which can effectively reduce the unevenness of the glaze and thus achieve the ideal easy-to-clean effect.

[0046] A sanitary ware includes a body, a white glaze layer, and an easy-clean glaze layer, wherein the white glaze layer and the easy-clean glaze layer are sequentially disposed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside.

[0047] The easy-clean glaze layer is made by firing the aforementioned easy-clean glaze.

[0048] A method for preparing sanitary ware, comprising the following steps:

[0049] (1) Prepare the easy-cleaning glaze according to any one of claims 1-5 according to the specified proportions;

[0050] (2) Apply white glaze to the surface of the blank, spray easy-to-clean glaze onto the surface of the white glaze, and form a wet glaze layer on the surface of the white glaze to obtain a semi-finished product.

[0051] (3) The semi-finished product is fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer are formed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside, thus obtaining sanitary ware.

[0052] Specifically, the white glaze used in this technical solution is a commonly used white glaze in the sanitary ware industry.

[0053] Specifically, the wet glaze layer is the glaze layer after the easy-to-clean glaze is applied and before firing, while the easy-to-clean glaze layer is the glaze layer after the wet glaze layer has been fired. The two have differences in shrinkage after firing.

[0054] Further explanation: the specific gravity of the easy-to-clean glaze is 1.5-1.6 g / mL, and the fluidity is 210-300°.

[0055] It is worth noting that when the specific gravity of the easy-clean glaze is controlled at 1.5 to 1.6 g / mL and the fluidity is controlled at 210 to 300°, it is beneficial to spray glaze and control the spray range, thickness and smoothness, thereby ensuring that the smoothness of the easy-clean glaze layer formed after firing is relatively high, thus achieving a better easy-clean effect.

[0056] Further explanation: In step (2), an easy-to-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze using a glazing robot. The operation method is as follows:

[0057] White glaze is applied to the surface of the blank. After the water gloss on the surface of the white glaze disappears, an easy-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze to form a wet glaze layer. The thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer are tested, and the glazing program is adjusted point-to-point by computer programming to adjust the thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer to the standard range, thus obtaining a semi-finished product. The semi-finished product is then fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer are formed sequentially from the inside to the outside on the surface of the blank, thus obtaining sanitary ware.

[0058] The coating thickness of the easy-to-clean glaze is 0.1–0.2 mm;

[0059] The thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer is 0.07–0.15 mm.

[0060] It is worth noting that when using a glazing robot for spraying in step (2) of this technical solution, it is first necessary to ensure the thickness of the glaze layer of the white glaze and the easy-to-clean glaze through program teaching, thereby further improving the easy-to-clean effect of the easy-to-clean glaze, and at the same time solving the problems of uneven antibacterial properties and white spots on the product surface. The main process of glazing robot teaching is as follows:

[0061] A: Take the blank after surface polishing and washing, place it in the teaching cabinet, use the teaching program of the glazing robot program and the manual teaching mode to spray manually to form a wet glaze layer on the surface of the blank. Mark every 15mm×15mm area on the surface of the sprayed product as a point, take one of these points as a test point, use vernier calipers to measure the thickness of the test point and record the result; then carry out the first firing. After firing, use an X-Rite spectrophotometer to measure the color difference at the test point position, and destroy the product. Use vernier calipers and a 40x magnifying glass to measure the thickness of the finished glaze layer (i.e., easy-clean glaze layer) after firing, confirm the data of color difference and finished glaze layer thickness after the first firing, and the corresponding thickness of the wet glaze layer.

[0062] B: After the first firing, the color difference, thickness, and wet glaze thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer are compared and matched. The point-to-point computer program is then used to adjust the glazing process to bring the thickness of the white wet glaze layer, the color difference, and the thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer to the standard range. The uniformity of the glaze layer thickness is ensured through multiple program adjustments and product verifications.

[0063] By repeatedly refining the program of the glazing robot, the thickness and color difference of the easy-clean glaze layer in the overall product are made uniform, ensuring the uniformity of the glaze surface. Simultaneously, during calibration, the speed and location of the glazing action are designed to eliminate instances of incomplete spraying and glaze runs, thus resolving the white spot problem on the glaze surface. This technical solution achieves the standard requirements for the uniformity and thickness of the glaze layer through program design, uses a spectrophotometer to measure colorimetric data more accurately, and further optimizes the glazing program to ensure the uniformity of the easy-clean glaze layer thickness.

[0064] To further explain, by setting the robot's internal program actions and parameters, and designing point-to-point trajectory parameter changes, the changes in spraying position and the speed of spraying can be controlled by adjusting the number of points, actions, and parameter values ​​within the program. These changes directly affect the glaze spraying effect. Since the glaze output and fan-shaped coverage position of the glazing robot's spray gun are fixed, if it passes quickly between two positioning points, the glaze layer will be relatively thin and the glaze will appear weak; if the spray gun passes slowly between two positioning points, more glaze will be sprayed in the area covered by the fan-shaped coverage, and excessive glaze will accumulate and run. Therefore, by designing the speed and position of the glazing action, the glaze surface can be made free from weak spraying and glaze running.

[0065] Further explanation: the glazing parameters of the glazing robot are required as follows: glaze pressure 0.3-0.6 MPa, air pressure 0.4-0.6 MPa, fan-shaped value 0.15-0.3 MPa, atomization value 0.3-0.6 MPa, and glaze output 500-600 mL / 30 s.

[0066] It is worth noting that glaze pressure, air pressure, fan-shaped value, atomization value, and output volume are all parameters for the operation of the glazing robot. These parameters define the spraying effect of the glazing robot's spray gun and directly affect the robot's working effect. This technical solution controls the glaze pressure at 0.3–0.6 MPa, the air pressure at 0.4–0.6 MPa, the fan-shaped value at 0.15–0.3 MPa, the atomization value at 0.3–0.6 MPa, and the output volume at 500–600 ml / 30 s, which can achieve a better glazing effect, making the thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer more uniform, thereby obtaining better easy-clean and antibacterial effects. If the values ​​of these parameters are not within the specified range, the glaze sprayed by the same program will not be in the position set by the program, and the program will not run according to the expected trajectory, resulting in poor glazing effect.

[0067] Specifically, the fan-shaped value refers to the pressure at which the glaze sprayed by the spray gun of the glazing robot reaches a predetermined fan shape, the atomization value refers to the pressure at which the glaze sprayed by the spray gun of the glazing robot reaches the atomization effect, and the glaze output refers to the amount of glaze sprayed by the spray gun within a certain time.

[0068] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described below with reference to specific embodiments and comparative examples.

[0069] Examples 1-5

[0070] An easy-to-clean glaze comprises the following raw materials in parts by weight: 15-22 parts quartz powder, 8-15 parts wollastonite, 25-40 parts potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts lithium carbonate, 15-30 parts boron frit, 10-18 parts nano zinc oxide, 0.01-0.3 parts silver ion antibacterial material, and 0.001-0.002 parts food-grade colorant; the content of particles smaller than 10 μm in the easy-to-clean glaze is 70-90% by weight percentage; specifically, the formulations of the easy-to-clean glazes in Examples 1-5 and the content of particles smaller than 10 μm in the easy-to-clean glazes are shown in Table 1 below;

[0071] The chemical composition of the boron ingot, calculated by mass percentage, is as follows: SiO2: 62.54%, Al2O3: 10.44%, Fe2O3: 0.01%, TiO2: 0.01%, CaO: 7.70%, MgO: 0.88%, K2O: 3.14%, Na2O: 0.98%, ZrO2: 0.64%, ZnO: 2.21%, B2O3: 10.9%, and BaO: 0.5%, with the balance being loss on ignition.

[0072] Table 1. Formulations and parameters of easy-to-clean glazes in Examples 1-5

[0073]

[0074] Application Example 1

[0075] The easy-cleaning glazes of Examples 1-5 were applied to the preparation of sanitary ware. The preparation method of the sanitary ware includes the following steps:

[0076] (1) Prepare easy-clean glazes for Examples 1-5 according to the proportions in Table 1, and prepare easy-clean glaze 1, easy-clean glaze 2, easy-clean glaze 3, easy-clean glaze 4 and easy-clean glaze 5 respectively.

[0077] (2) Apply white glaze to the surface of the five blanks respectively, and spray easy-clean glaze 1, easy-clean glaze 2, easy-clean glaze 3, easy-clean glaze 4 and easy-clean glaze 5 onto the surface of the five blanks with white glaze, forming a wet glaze layer on the surface of the white glaze, to obtain five semi-finished products; fire the semi-finished products to obtain five sanitary ware products. Each sanitary ware product includes a blank, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer. The five sanitary ware products are marked as sanitary ware 1, sanitary ware 2, sanitary ware 3, sanitary ware 4 and sanitary ware 5 respectively.

[0078] Specifically, the surface roughness and antibacterial properties of the five sanitary ware products prepared above were tested, and the testing methods are as follows:

[0079] Roughness testing method: Using a roughness tester, three points are randomly selected on the glaze surface of each sanitary ware sample for testing, and three roughness test results are obtained. The average value is then calculated.

[0080] Antimicrobial testing methods include initial antimicrobial testing and antimicrobial durability testing. Initial antimicrobial testing refers to the antimicrobial properties of the sanitary ware sample before use after preparation. The testing method involves sending the prepared sanitary ware sample to an external professional testing center (such as the Foshan Customs Comprehensive Technical Center) for testing, specifically to detect the antimicrobial properties of the sanitary ware product against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. The antimicrobial durability testing method is as follows: According to the industry standard JC / T 897-2014 "Antibacterial Properties of Antimicrobial Ceramic Products," a 5% sodium hypochlorite disinfectant solution is prepared for 500 rinsing cycles of the sanitary ware sample. The durability is observed. After 500 rinsing cycles, the sanitary ware sample is then sent to an external professional testing center (such as the Foshan Customs Comprehensive Technical Center) for further testing, specifically to detect the antimicrobial properties of the sanitary ware product against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus.

[0081] According to the above test methods, the roughness and antibacterial properties of sanitary ware 1, sanitary ware 2, sanitary ware 3, sanitary ware 4 and sanitary ware 5 were tested. The test results are shown in Table 2 below. The roughness values ​​in the table are the average values ​​obtained by the roughness test method for each product.

[0082] Table 2. Test results of roughness and antibacterial properties.

[0083]

[0084]

[0085] Comparative Example 1

[0086] This comparative example is an antibacterial easy-clean glaze with a single formula composed of raw materials (i.e., without frit). By mass percentage, the raw materials of the antibacterial easy-clean glaze include: 16.7% quartz powder, 23% wollastonite, 40% potassium feldspar powder, 20% nano zinc oxide antibacterial agent, and 0.3% silver ion antibacterial agent. The content of particles smaller than 10μm in this comparative example antibacterial easy-clean glaze is 80%.

[0087] Sanitary ware was prepared using the antibacterial easy-clean glaze of this comparative example. The roughness, initial antibacterial properties, and antibacterial durability of the sanitary ware prepared in this comparative example were tested using the above-mentioned testing methods. The roughness of the sanitary ware prepared in this comparative example was 0.101, the initial antibacterial property was >95%, and the antibacterial durability was >95%.

[0088] As shown in Table 2 and the test results of Comparative Example 1, the easy-cleaning glazes of Examples 1-5, when used to prepare sanitary ware, produce sanitary ware with very low surface roughness, ranging from 0.056 to 0.062 Ra. This roughness is significantly lower than that of the antibacterial easy-cleaning glaze of Comparative Example 1, which uses only raw materials. This indicates that the sanitary ware prepared using the easy-cleaning glazes of Examples 1-5 has high surface smoothness and a smooth glaze, exhibiting excellent easy-cleaning properties. Furthermore, the initial antibacterial activity of sanitary ware 1-5 is ≥99.9%, exceeding the current antibacterial performance standard for sanitary ware (standard ≥90%) and also exceeding that of the antibacterial easy-cleaning glaze of Comparative Example 1. Moreover, the antibacterial durability of sanitary ware 1-5 is ≥99.9%, far exceeding the standard in this field (standard ≥85%) and also exceeding that of the antibacterial easy-cleaning glaze of Comparative Example 1. Therefore, the easy-cleaning glazes of Examples 1-5 possess excellent antibacterial effects.

[0089] The technical principles of the present invention have been described above with reference to specific embodiments. These descriptions are merely for explaining the principles of the invention and should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of the invention in any way. Based on this explanation, those skilled in the art can readily conceive of other specific embodiments of the invention without inventive effort, and these embodiments will all fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. An easy-to-clean glaze characterized in that, It is composed of the following raw materials in parts by weight: 15-22 parts quartz powder, 8-15 parts wollastonite, 25-40 parts potassium feldspar, 3-10 parts lithium carbonate, 15-30 parts boron frit, and 0.001-0.002 parts food-grade colorant; The melting temperature of the boron fused block is 1050~1160℃, and the boron trioxide content in the boron fused block is greater than or equal to 10% by mass percentage.

2. The easy-to-clean glaze according to claim 1, wherein The chemical composition of the boron ingot, calculated as a percentage by mass, is as follows: SiO2: 62~66%, Al2O3: 8~12%, Fe2O3: 0.005~0.02%, TiO2: 0.005~0.02%, CaO: 6~9%, MgO: 0.5~3%, K2O: 3~5%, Na2O: 0.7~3%, ZrO2: 0.5~0.9%, ZnO: 2~5%, B2O3: 10~12% and BaO: 0.5~1%, with the balance being loss on ignition.

3. The easy-to-clean glaze according to claim 1, characterized in that, The easy-to-clean glaze, calculated by weight, also includes 10-18 parts of nano zinc oxide and 0.01-0.3 parts of silver ion antibacterial material.

4. The easy-to-clean glaze according to claim 1, wherein The content of particles smaller than 10μm in the easy-clean glaze is 70-90% by mass percentage.

5. A sanitary ware, characterised in that It includes a body, a white glaze layer, and an easy-clean glaze layer, wherein the white glaze layer and the easy-clean glaze layer are sequentially disposed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside; The easy-clean glaze is made by firing the easy-clean glaze as described in any one of claims 1-4.

6. A method of producing sanitary ware, characterised in that, The method for preparing the sanitary ware according to claim 5 includes the following steps: (1) Prepare the easy-clean glaze according to any one of claims 1-4 according to the specified proportions; (2) Apply white glaze to the surface of the blank, spray easy-to-clean glaze onto the surface of the white glaze, and form a wet glaze layer on the surface of the white glaze to obtain a semi-finished product; (3) The semi-finished product is fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-to-clean glaze layer are formed on the surface of the body from the inside to the outside, thus obtaining sanitary ware.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the sanitary ware is prepared by the steps of: The glaze slurry prepared from the easy-to-clean glaze has a specific gravity of 1.5~1.6g / mL and a fluidity of 210~300°.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the sanitary ware is prepared by the steps of: In step (2), an easy-to-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze using a glazing robot. The operation method is as follows: White glaze is applied to the surface of the blank. After the water gloss on the surface of the white glaze disappears, an easy-clean glaze is sprayed onto the surface of the white glaze to form a wet glaze layer. The thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer are tested, and the glazing program is adjusted point-to-point by computer programming to adjust the thickness and color difference of the wet glaze layer to the standard range, thus obtaining a semi-finished product. The semi-finished product is then fired. After firing, a white glaze layer and an easy-clean glaze layer are formed sequentially from the inside to the outside on the surface of the blank, thus obtaining sanitary ware. The coating thickness of the easy-to-clean glaze is 0.1~0.2mm; The thickness of the easy-clean glaze layer is 0.07~0.15mm.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the sanitary ware is prepared by the steps of: The glazing parameters of the glazing robot are as follows: glaze pressure is 0.3~0.6MPa, air pressure is 0.4~0.6MPa, fan-shaped value is 0.15~0.3MPa, atomization value is 0.3~0.6MPa, and glaze output is 500~600mL / 30s.

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