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Can anyone tell me if it is possible to eat silica? Here´s why I need to know.....

I am currently located in northern Germany and my German is limited. Looked up the word for silica in a German/English dictionary and came up with "Kieselerde". Am trying to make my own molds and need it to mix with the plaster. When I inquired about where to purchase "Kieselerde" they said that it could be purchased at a drug store or stores that carried over the counter medications. They said that it is good for the circulation when eaten. I am trying to figure out if we are truely talking about the same stuff or am I going to be purchasing something that is going to frustrate me by possibly creating a mess in my kiln.

I had posted my first message not long ago about face molds (and how to slump over). I think that silica/plaster would be the best to slump over. I do not want a texture on the exterior of the "face" so that would eliminate slumping into. If I use clay I´ve read that it would crack the glass if I slumped over it because glass shrinks more than clay. I think that leaves me with a silica/plaster mold? Any other suggestions would save me a lot of time and hassles.

Boy do I have some frustrating stories to tell you....

Thanks ahead of time for those of you who respond. There is a big time zone difference over here so I am a bit slow with response time. I apologize....

GatorGirl wrote:Can anyone tell me if it is possible to eat silica? Here´s why I need to know.....

I am currently located in northern Germany and my German is limited. Looked up the word for silica in a German/English dictionary and came up with "Kieselerde".

..

have you checked out the http://www.bohle.de site?
there are English and German versions, and they have a mould making section. You should be able to figure out the terminology (though I have to say the word 'silica' doesn't appear).

find a potter. they will know where to get silica. maybe the local high school or college? the drug store kind is not what you want. rosanna

GatorGirl wrote:Can anyone tell me if it is possible to eat silica? Here´s why I need to know.....

...They said that it is good for the circulation when eaten. I am trying to figure out if we are truely talking about the same stuff or am I going to be purchasing something that is going to frustrate me by possibly creating a mess in my kiln.

Via dictionary.com:

Kieselerde [f.]: silica [n.], siliceous earth [n.]

Quarzsand [m.]: arenaceous quartz [n.], quartz sand [n.], quartzose sand [n.], silica sand [n.]

So maybe 'Quarzsand' is what you need. Entries for 'flint' weren't too helpful.

Cheers,

Glenn

Having picnics on the beach has proven that, yes, you can eat silica.

OK this is what I´ve found out. Bohle does carry a cement mix used for making glass molds. It isn´t silica but it sounds like some good stuff. However, seeing how I don´t have a business license/tax id # they will not sell it (or anything) to me.

The local potter appears to be just as perplexed as I am. (I am getting a good dose of Chemistry today let me tell you!) Anyway he says that quartz and silica have the same composition SEO2. If anyone can tell me if quartz=silica then we are in business as he does have quite a bit of quartz. Now I called a big ceramic warehouse that doesn´t deal with glass but they too said that quartz and silica had the came composition of SEO2 but ..... that´s when he lost me with his German. He did tell me that there was something they did for making molds and that was clay that had already been fired once and then they grind it up and make a powdery or granular substance. Then they use 50% "schmott" with 50% plaster. I guess it holds up when fired to high temps. (He lost me with his dialect at this point.) It would make sense anyway. He did not recommend silica because he said that some would explode in the kiln. I am assuming he means a big quartz rock or something fired quickly.

I did go to a website http://www.energiavital-shop.de/ and typed in Kieselerde and did find out that one form of silica(along with calcium) are indeed used as edible tablets.

I also called an American military facility in Germany but the man who is perhaps knowledgable on the subject is currently in Texas at an HIA convention.

As for the definition from Glenn....it does mention quartz quite a bit.

So now I have to figure out where I will go from here.
Thanks for all of the input everyone. Now I will go into the archives and see if I can get more info.

How about mixing vermiculite with plaster? I´ve got quite a bit of that around.

Quartz and silica are essentially the same. Quartz is a naturally occuring mineral, the chemical formula is SiO2. Silica and oxygen are common elements in many naturally occuring minerals. I would assume that you want finely ground material for mould making... something like silica flour.

Cheers,

Bob

Silica flour is finely ground quartz. The schmott he mentioned is apparently what we call grog -- fired clay ground up. Most clay is primarily alumina and silica in various propportions so I bet grog would work just fine. Do some small scale tests.

You can also use olivine sand instead of silica, which is used mostly in the steel and cast iron industries. Olivine is safer to use than fine silica.

ch

Thank you soooo much for the info!!!!!
Love this website!

GatorGirl wrote:There is a big time zone difference over here....

For that very same reason, this is why the US economy is so strong; whilst the Americans are busy working, all the English are down the pub...

Yes, some Gremans do eat Kieselerde. It is very fine silica sand. The drugstore is maybe the most expensive place to buy it.

Chamotte is what is called Grogg in English. Usually made
of white clay. From a potter's supply you may get
clay with 25 or 35 % chamotte. Mine comes from Cerama
in Copenhagen.

I have used plaster+chamotte molds a lot.
The critical points are:
- you have to mix the dry materias really well.
- when water is added, the chamotte will suck up a lot,
so you end with a too thick consictency to cast
or toomuch water to make a durable mold.
Use the proper amount of water for plaster and work *Quickly*
- I have not yet tried making separate slurried and mixing
wet.

You can replace chamotte with Molochite(tm) what I guess is
prefired silica sand.

Your potter's supplier propably carries all this stuff.
Only note that Potter's Plaster is soft. Use HartGips
instead.

- lauri (in Finnland)

GatorGirl wrote:Can anyone tell me if it is possible to eat silica?...

check out this thread from Spab's forum. Brad posted it. I guess you can eat silica...

http://www.warmglass.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=3980

Well, I guess I won't worry about kitties slurping a little water out of the wash tub filled with glass. And yesterday, CNN ran an article on folks in India using ground glass as roughage. Hmmm.... well... um, quite!

Cynthia and Jerry your responses are a hoot! Lauri thank you for that info. it is very helpful. I have a friend who lives within walking distance and she comes from Finnland. (She doesn´t do glass though).
Kim

What part of Northern Germany are you living in and how do you like it? I lived in Wedel, a small town on the Elbe just north of Hamburg for two years a few years back. It was quite an experience being immersed in the German culture. I can just imagine what you are going through with the language. I am not surprised that the Germans might eat a little sand for desert now and then, they are so health conscious and natural-oriented. Have a great time over there, if you need any advice on life in Germany as an American let me know, we learned a lot while over there.

According to Lundstrom (book 3)
luto, the once used mold material
of paster plus silica sand or kaolin
tasted good.

That's recycling.
-lauri

Not only am I learning about glass but the different customs around the world! Very informative and very interesting! I am going to try SIO2 (Quartz) with Potters Plaster and Grog and see what happens. Wish me luck. Will give you all a heads up after I fire it with the result. I´ve got a pretty busy schedule so it might take me a day or two.

Kim

Lauri where do I get the Hartgips? Hardware store?