The work aims to evaluate the effect of temperature and composition on the physical properties of ceramic electrical porcelain insulators, produced from locally sourced materials in Nigeria. The basic raw materials of triaxial porcelain (Kaolin, feldspar, and quartz) were pulverized, milled for 22 h, and sieved using a 200 μm mesh size. The chemical composition and characterization of the raw materials were obtained using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis. The mixtures were formulated using sodium silicate as a deflocculant to help produce the ceramic porcelain samples. The green samples were weighed and fired at temperatures of 1200 °C and 1250 °C. The samples were subjected to 1 h of boiling plus 2 h of soaking. The slip casting technique was used in the production of porcelain insulators. The linear shrinkage, water absorbance, apparent porosity, and bulk density were measured and studied as a function of firing temperature. The apparent porosity and water absorption decreased as the firing temperature increased. The bulk density increased gradually from 1200 °C to 1250 °C and the percentage of moisture remained fairly unaffected by the temperature increase. The linear shrinkage was also found to increase as the firing temperature increased. Despite having the same composition, the average physical properties of the locally manufactured insulators revealed that those manufactured at higher temperatures provided a better insulating effect than those manufactured at lower temperatures. In other words, it shows that excellent ceramic porcelain insulators can be manufactured from locally sourced materials using the appropriate composition and firing temperature.

This paper reviewed the production of electric porcelain insulators utilizing from local raw materials from developing countries. The raw materials used were feldspar, quartz/silica and kaolin. The chemical composition, mineralogy, and thermal properties of the raw materials were characterized using AAS, XRD, and TGA respectively. Different weight percentage combinations of the individual raw materials were investigated by the authors. Most of the results showed relatively acceptable porcelain insulators properties such as low water absorption, porosity, high insulation resistance, dielectric strength and bulk density. The paper showed that electric porcelain insulators with good properties can be produced from available local raw materials in some developing countries using appropriate formulations. However, for production of improved porcelain insulators properties, suggestions were made on the areas for future research.