Batch experiments were carried out on the dry ball milling of commonly used ceramic raw materials quartz, kaolin and feldspar, singly and as ternary mixtures. The modified form of the Charles energy-size reduction equation was used to calculate the energy consumed by each of the components in the mixture. The results confirmed the validity of the mass fraction hypothesis for energy split between the components that had been defined and verified for the binary mixtures of equal-density minerals. The distribution and size module of the minerals remained the same whether they were ground separately or in a ternary mixture. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier Ltd.