The microwave assisted sintering of a commercial grade quartz body porcelain composition was carried out in air at a frequency of 2.45 GHz. The sintered samples were characterized by different analytical techniques. The properties of the microwave- sintered products were compared with those obtained by a commercially- processed method in a partial reducing atmosphere. It was observed that porcelain samples can be fast fired in a microwave furnace to give better mechanical strength. The required phase contents can be developed during fast microwave firing. The electrical properties such as volume resistivity, breakdown voltage, dielectric strength and dissipation factor are reported which are essential for high voltage applications. The comprehensive results obtained in this study indicate that significant savings in energy are possible in processing a complicated triaxial porcelain material.

Keywords: Porcelain, Characterization, Microwave processing, Strength, Electrical Properties, Energy savings.