Vocabulary used in describing abrasive tools

Abrasive material - material in the form of grains of a certain size and shape, having the properties of cutting blades.

Abrasive grain number - a numerical discriminator that characterizes the size range of grains (also called granularity or grit).

Grain and micrograin size - the characteristic dimension of the abrasive grain (micrograin) in [mm] or [μm].
 

According to the criterion of origin, abrasives are divided into:

• natural (e.g., corundum, diamond)

• artificial, obtained by electrothermal and physicochemical processes (e.g., electrocorundum, silicon carbide, synthetic diamond, CBN)

According to the criterion of hardness, abrasives are divided into:

• hard (electrocorundum, silicon carbides, etc.), often referred to as conventional abrasives

• superhard (diamond, CBN). 

Abrasive tools are divided into:

• bonded

• coated

BONDED ABRASIVE TOOLS

Bonded abrasive tools are made of abrasive compound, which is a mixture of abrasive grain and bond. The pores between the abrasive grain and the bond also have a significant impact on the grinding process. Grinding wheels, abrasive segments and sharpening stones can be distinguished among bonded abrasive tools.

In this group, ANDRE offers both conventional and superhard tools:

• ceramic bonded abrasive tools

• resin bonded abrasive tools

STRUCTURE OF BONDED ABRASIVE TOOLS

Abrasive material

Structure (for bonded abrasive tools only) - a number indicating the percentage of abrasive material in the total volume of the abrasive tool. 

Concentration (for super-hard tools only) - an amount of super-hard grain (diamond or CBN) per 1cm3 of the working layer of the grinding wheel.

Bond - material that binds the abrasive grains. e.g.:
• ceramic

• resin (organic)

• galvanic.

The hardness of the bonded abrasive tool - the measure of the force required to pull the grain out of the surrounding bond. Marked on a letter scale from E to Z.

SEMI-FLEXIBLE ABRASIVE TOOLS (COATED)

In coated abrasive tools, the abrasive layer is fixed on a substrate, e.g.: made of paper, cloth, fiber by means of adhesives.

Backing - the base in case of coated abrasive tools, made of paper, cloth, fiber to which the grain is attached using a bond.

Coated abrasive tools in ANDRE's offer:

• flap wheels

• semi-flexible grinding discs with profiled abrasive coating

• CBS discs

• mounted flap wheels

• fiber discs

• non-wovens.