# How long does a Khurja shuttle kiln take to fire a load, and what should a pottery unit log for each firing?

Canonical: https://senseible.earth/answers/khurja-shuttle-kiln-firing-schedule-1240-degrees

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) profile of Khurja says a shuttle kiln heats a load to about 1,240 degrees Celsius (°C) in about 36 hours, soaks about 2 hours, then cools by blower to about 200 °C. It prints no cooling time, so log the start, peak, soak, fuel and good ware for each firing.

## The shuttle kiln cycle as the profile prints it

The profile says shuttle kilns are batch operated, suit non-uniform products such as decorative items, and have no waste heat recovery. If a load starts near 30 °C (my assumption), 1,240 minus 30 is 1,210 °C in 36 hours, about 34 °C an hour. Cooling time is not printed.

1. Greens are loaded and the kiln closed. The kiln is oil fired.
2. It is heated slowly and gradually to about 1,240 °C, which generally takes about 36 hours.
3. The load soaks at the maximum temperature for about 2 hours, to fire glazed products.
4. Fuel to the burners is cut off and only cooling air is supplied. Forced cooling by air blowers continues until the kiln is at about 200 °C.
5. The blower stops, the doors open and the ware cools naturally.

## The tunnel kiln beside it

- Continuous, with preheating, firing and cooling zones. An electrically operated pusher moves loaded trolleys, and the pushing time sets the residence time.
- The firing zone is held at 1,050 to 1,200 °C depending on the product, such as crockery or insulators.
- Capacity is 2 to 9 tonnes a day. The profile counts 91 tunnel kilns, 60 shuttle kilns and 5 downdraft kilns, although it also says no downdraft kilns are in operation at present.

## What to log for each shuttle firing

- Start and end hours, peak temperature and soak hours.
- Fuel at the start and end, from the tank dip or meter.
- Tonnes of good ware out, and rejects separately.
- This list is my suggestion; the profile does not set one.

## Why the log pays

The profile's specific energy consumption (SEC) for a shuttle kiln is far above a tunnel kiln's, and it says this may be attributed to batch operation, no waste heat recovery and no temperature monitoring and control. The figures are on the Khurja fuels page linked below. Your own fuel per firing, divided by good ware, is the number a buyer or lender can check.

## One firing log line (example)

- Heat-up 36 hours to 1,240 °C, soak 2 hours
- Fuel at start 1,820 litres, at end 1,640 litres: 180 litres used
- Good ware out 1,500 kilograms, rejects 60 kilograms
- Fuel per kilogram of good ware: 180 / 1,500 = 0.12 litres

Every number in this log line is an example, not a measurement of any kiln.

## What Senseible does here

Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into monthly records, so the fuel and power lines of a furnace or kiln are on file. In the self-serve product it does not read kiln temperature logs; custom sensors are available on request. The firing log stays in your own book, kept beside the monthly fuel record.

- [Khurja fuels and the green loan route](https://senseible.earth/answers/khurja-pottery-cluster-fuels-and-green-loan-route)
- [Tunnel kiln against shuttle kiln emissions](https://senseible.earth/answers/tunnel-kiln-vs-shuttle-kiln-emissions)
- [Kiln temperature log a verifier wants](https://senseible.earth/answers/kiln-temperature-log-what-verifier-wants)
- [Tunnel kiln heat per kg in two profiles](https://senseible.earth/answers/tunnel-kiln-heat-per-kg-khurja-and-virudhachalam)

Sources: [TERI, Cluster profile: Khurja potteries, Uttar Pradesh (SAMEEEKSHA)](https://sameeeksha.org/pdf/clusterprofile/Khurja_Potteries_Uttar_Pradesh.pdf)

Last reviewed 2026-11-06. Figures are from TERI's 2015 cluster profile, which describes the cluster at that time; fuels, kiln counts and prices have moved since. Treat them as typical, and check your own records before quoting.