Impact of Zinc Oxide on the Structure and Surface Properties of Magnesium–Potassium Glass–Crystalline Glazes

The present work describes test results for glass crystal materials based on the SiO2-Al2O3-MgO-K2O system after 5, 10, 15, and 20 wt.% zinc oxide was added. The glazing analysis involved determining the effect of the additive on the characteristic temperatures and properties of the surface obtained, such as color, gloss, and roughness, as expressed by a Ra parameter. The obtained glazes were also analyzed for changes in phase composition (quantitative and qualitative XRD tests), changes in microstructure (based on images obtained with a scanning electron microscope), and structure (based on analyses and decomposition of spectra obtained using mid-infrared spectroscopy). As a result, the maximum addition of zinc oxide provided the best results.