porcelaneous

Porcelaneous is an adjective meaning resembling porcelain in appearance or texture. In materials science, mineralogy, and petrology, the term describes surfaces or fabrics that are exceptionally smooth, fine-grained, and often slightly translucent, with a sheen akin to porcelain. A porcelaneous texture is typically compact and may break with a smooth, conchoidal or near-ceramic fracture. It is commonly used to characterize certain cherts, fine-grained siliceous rocks, and high-quality ceramic pastes.

In geology, porcelaneous textures are contrasted with vitreous (glassy) and earthy textures. Porcelaneous chert, for example, exhibits a porcelain-like luster and a non-porous, uniform structure, whereas glassy textures are more vitreous and often more reflective. In archaeology and ceramics, the term can describe pottery surfaces or glazes that imitate true porcelain, including a white or near-white color and varying degrees of translucence in thin sections.

Spelling variants such as porcellanous are common in technical literature, and both forms are generally understood to convey the same idea. The word ultimately derives from porcelain, through Romance-language roots, reflecting the distinctive, porcelain-like appearance it denotes.

See also porcelain, porcellana, vitreous, waxy texture.