A study has been made on the role of the coarse-filler strength characteristics in refractory materials. Measurements have been made on the mechanical properties of several fillers (corundum, and spinel), and the effects of heat treatment on the mechanical properties.Much attention is being given to the matrix part of refractory materials and items, which are finely ground components producing a continuous medium. It is correctly considered that this determines virtually all the basic working characteristics: strength, creep, porosity, thermal resistance, corrosion resistance, and so on. However, one should not forget the role of the granular filler. Coarse dense filler produces a framework in the item or the material that substantially influences the compressive strength and the thermal resistance of the item or lining, while having less effect on the rheological properties: pressability, mobility, and water uptake of the concrete mixture. The medium-grained and fine-grained filler on the other hand has a considerable effect on the rheological behavior and has less effect on the strength (within some best limits).It is considered a priori that the use of a granular filler (sintered or melted) in producing a refractory has the maximum possible best effects on the properties such as the strength, porosity, and so on, and shows least changes during the operation of the refractory. On the other hand, resistance measurements made on various refractory materials and items in the last 3 -5 years have led to an increasing frequency of premature failure because of inadequate strength and heat resistance of the coarse melted filler. This applies not only to items (in particular, periclase-carbon items for lining ferrous metallurgy converters) and to concrete-type materials (for lining channels in blast furnaces, or a working and reinforcement lining of steel-pouring ladles, and so on).A feature common to all cases of premature failure lies in the state of the coarse filler. On the one hand, it completely corresponds to the requirements as regards chemical and grain-size compositions, while on the other hand, in the preparation of specimens for petrographic examination (surface polishing) the filler grains have elevated brittleness (the grains break in polishing), which indicates that the grains have excess energy, which during service is consumed as a rule in failure of the grains, i.e., during the service of the item or material, there may be fracturing of the grains with subsequent impregnation of the lining by liquid directly in the filler grains, but not in the matrix.Excess potential energy arises in the grains of coarse fused filler, which may evidently occur during cooling of the molten material (too rapid forced cooling [1]) or melting in a reducing medium in a melting system, which favors transition of impurity transitional oxides into a reduced state and predetermines the volume changes in the filler grains under oxidizing conditions.Reductive melting at a reduced oxygen partial pressure causes the material to a...