Systems and methods for cleanable and slip resistant tile
View Patent ↗Disclosed herein are tiles, coatings, and related methods that provide both high cleanability and high slip resistance. The coating can be a surface coating with a unique chemical make-up. The surface coating can also have particles suspended within it. During a firing process, the coating and particles can settle in such a manner that the surface structure of the coating, and thus the surface structure of the tile, is both easy to clean and slip-resistant.
1. A tile comprising:
a ceramic substrate; and
a surface coating comprising:
a base formula; and
particles comprising alumina-zirconium-silicate,
wherein the base formula comprises a glaze.
2. The tile of claim 1 , the surface coating further comprising particles comprising tabular alumina.
3. The tile of claim 1 , the surface coating further comprising particles comprising alumina trihydrate.
4. The tile of claim 1 , the surface coating further comprising particles comprising tabular alumina and particles comprising alumina trihydrate.
5. The tile of claim 4 , wherein the weight of particles comprising alumina-zirconium-silicate and the weight of particles comprising alumina trihydrate is substantially equal.
6. The tile of claim 4 , wherein the weight ratio of particles comprising alumina-zirconium-silicate to particles comprising alumina trihydrate to particles comprising tabular alumina is from 3:3:1 to 5:5:1.
7. The tile of claim 4 , wherein the weight ratio of particles comprising alumina-zirconium-silicate to particles comprising alumina trihydrate to particles comprising tabular alumina is approximately 4:4:1.
8. The tile of claim 1 , wherein substantially all of the particles have a diameter less than 33.011 μm.
9. The tile of claim 1 , wherein about 90% of the particles have a diameter less than 20.0436 μm.
10. The tile of claim 1 , wherein about 50% of the particles have a diameter less than 7.25089 μm.
11. The tile of claim 1 , further comprising a base coating disposed substantially between the substrate and the surface coating.
12. The tile of claim 11 , wherein the base coating supports the surface coating during a firing process, wherein at least a portion of the firing process occurs at above 1150 degrees Celsius.
13. The tile of claim 1 , the surface coating providing a clean-ability ΔE of 0.6 to 1.0 and a dynamic coefficient of friction of 0.60 to 0.95.
14. The tile of claim 1 , wherein the glaze comprises a frit, a clay, and an opacifier.
15. The tile of claim 13 , wherein an average RMS of the tile is between 11.5 μm and 12.6 μm.
16. The tile of claim 13 , wherein an average Ra of the tile is between 9.5 μm and 11.0 μm.
17. The tile of claim 1 , wherein the particles make up 1% to 25% of the weight of the surface coating.