Crystal stone, or colloquially, porcelain stone, is a mass of limestone or dolomite rocks that have recrystallized due to internal factors, such as temperature and pressure, and are therefore considered metamorphic rocks.
In fact, Chinese stone belongs to the family of marble stones, which are different in different places in terms of the degree of transformation and some chemical compounds. Porcelain often has large crystals. These coarse crystals are the difference between porcelain and sedimentary carbonate rocks.
Sometimes there is a misconception about porcelain stone or crystal stone that this stone was imported from China. This type of stone is a product of Iran’s own mines, which are classified into categories such as Aliguderz porcelain stone, cloud crystal stone, Sirjan stone, etc.
Characteristics of porcelain stoneware
Porcelain stone often has large white or light gray to cream crystals.
The main mineral that forms them is calcite, but some of them also contain quartz, which increases the hardness of the stone.
Its bending strength is between six and fifteen MPa and its tensile strength is four MPa on average. The porosity of this stone is very low and between 0.3% and 1.2%.
These stones were used in different spaces of construction projects in the past years, but their use has been greatly reduced for some time. The reason is the great variety of travertine stone.
The use of porcelain stone for facade and exterior space is completely technical and correct, and this stone is between granite and travertine in terms of water absorption and grout adhesion, which means that it is as absorbent as travertine stone and not as non-sticky as granite.
In the meantime, Sirjan stone is still widely used and has its fans due to its high resistance and beautiful design. This stone has a relatively high price.
Recently, crystal stone and porcelain stone are processed and cut into slabs, which makes it possible to use them in stylish interior spaces.
As mentioned, porcelain stone has a low color variety and is usually white or white with a halo or yellow streaks.
Porcelain stone is cut by soft stone cutting machines and usually does not need a net and special resin because it has very little porosity and empty veins.
To ensure the stone’s resistance for many years and its long life, they have used a thicker stone, i.e. eight centimeters
.