Abstract: An aluminosilicate ceramic product or article and a method of forming the article from as-mined ore. The product is useful as a proppant in gas and oil well fracturing. The ratio, on a calcined basis, of alumina to silica is between approximately 2.2 to 4.0. The amount of iron in the product is controlled as a function of the alumina to silica ratio so as to produce products having less than ten percent (10%) crush loss when subjected to a force of 10,000 psi.

Abstract: A method for producing essentially spherical dry pellets largely comprising combustible materials, a method for using the pellets as cores by uniformly coating them with a ceramic-forming powder and sintering the powder to volatilize the combustible core material and form hollow ceramic balls, and a method for using the balls as catalyst supports by coating them with platinum and palladium salts and reducing the salts to elemental metals so that satisfactory oxidizing catalysts are obtained. When the ceramic is an aluminosilicate such as mullite, satisfactory oxidizing catalysts are obtained that pass the bulk density, crush strength, dust-free surface, and oxidizing temperature requirements of specifications developed to meet automobile exhaust emission requirements.