clay
Sign in to saveClay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impurities, such as a reddish or brownish colour from small amounts of iron oxide.
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Clay is a fine-grained natural soil material made up of clay minerals, which are compounds containing aluminum, silicon, oxygen, and water; while pure clay minerals are typically white or light-colored, natural clays often appear in various colors like red or brown due to impurities such as iron oxide. Clay matters because its unique mineral composition and fine texture make it useful for various applications, from pottery and construction to industrial processes.
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12 sectionsContents
- Properties
- Agriculture
- Formation
- Varieties
- Uses
- Materials
- Medicine
- Construction
- See also
- Notes
- References
- External links
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impurities, such as a reddish or brownish colour from small amounts of iron oxide.
Clays develop plasticity when wet but can be hardened through firing. Clay is the longest-known ceramic raw material. Prehistoric humans discovered the useful properties of clay and used it for making pottery. Some of the earliest pottery shards have been dated to around 14,000 BCE, and clay tablets were the first known writing medium. Clay is used in many modern industrial processes, such as paper making, cement production, and chemical filtering. Between one-half and two-thirds of the world's population live or work in buildings made with clay, often baked into brick, as an essential part of its load-bearing structure. In agriculture, clay content is a major factor in determining land arability. Clay soils are generally less suitable for crops due to poor natural drainage; however, clay soils are more fertile, due to higher cation-exchange capacity.