Thread Content
In the past two years, due to environmental issues, many small and medium-sized enterprises have expressed great dissatisfaction; these problems have even had a serious impact on the livelihoods of the employees working in these companies, and their effects on various industries cannot be underestimated. The abrasive industry has also experienced fluctuations as a result; last year, the price of black corundum soared, leaving many people confused. So, what is the current market situation for black corundum and what are its future prospects? Let the editors from Qianjia Xinnai Materials give you a detailed overview! The development history of black corundum: Black corundum was first used in Japan to clean the turbine blades in nuclear power plants. After operating for a period of time, the steam containing impurities will cause scaling on the complex, curved blades of the turbine, with these impurities adhering firmly to the surface of the turbine blades. As the amount of impurities attached increases, the output of the turbine will decrease significantly. Therefore, every six months to a year, the turbine must be shut down to remove the scale buildup on its blades. In the 1970s, the Shanghai Abrasives and Tools Factory in China began experimenting with the production of black corundum products. In the early 1980s, Zhejiang Abrasives and Tools Development Company also began producing corundum products. Meanwhile, China does not. However, as the number of enterprises producing black corundum increased and production processes remained backward, there was little research on the properties of black corundum, causing the domestic market for this material to enter a period of decline. Composition of black corundum: Black corundum abrasives consist of relatively large particles; their Al2O3 content is low, with a certain amount of Fe2O3 (around 10%) and SiO2 present. It is produced by melting high-iron bauxite or high-alumina bauxite along with high-alumina magnetite in an electric arc furnace at high temperatures followed by cooling. This results in a grayish-black crystal whose main mineral phases are α-Al2O3 and iron spinel, and it is characterized by a moderate Al2O3 content. Properties and uses of black corundum: 1. Constructing wear-resistant and anti-slip surfaces. When building bridges, road slopes, and sharp curves in parking lots, a wear-resistant material is often laid on the surface to provide anti-slip properties. At present, the commonly used wear-resistant material in this field in our country is silicon carbide. Although silicon carbide has high hardness and good anti-slip properties, it is relatively expensive, and thus not cost-effective for use in paving large areas of roads. Furthermore, the silicon carbide surface is smooth, and mirror reflections are likely to occur under backlighting, which can interfere with the driver’s vision. However, using 3-5mm, 1-3mm, 1-2mm, and 0.4-1mm corundum segment sand for road paving also provides good wear and slip resistance. Corundum is relatively inexpensive, which helps to reduce costs, making it suitable for use in large-scale paving projects. At the same time, due to the rough surface of black corundum, the defects caused by road surface reflection can be **improved**. Currently, black corundum is widely used as an anti-slip material in ** and ** regions in Europe, as well as in the economically developed areas of China. 2. Grinding and polishing materials: In the 1970s, as the market gained a better understanding of the properties of corundum abrasives, efforts were made to explore their use in polishing and grinding applications. To date, black corundum has become an ideal abrasive for polishing stainless steel, ordinary steel, bamboo and wood, glass, copper and aluminum products, as well as 3C electronic components. Coated abrasives such as sandpapers, grinding wheels, polishing waxes, and black corundum sandblasting are widely used in the polishing of stainless steel tableware, bicycles, electric fans, watch parts, and hardware tools. In stainless steel polishing, F14-F1000 black corundum products are commonly used to polish various workpieces, especially those made of stainless steel. F14-F80 is commonly used for sandblasting to remove rust and impurities from the surface of workpieces. Black corundum sands from F80 to F320 are typically used on cloth wheels to grind and polish workpieces, or they are used to make fiber polishing wheels for polishing purposes; grades F320 to F1000 are commonly used in the production of polishing waxes, resin grinding blocks and other grinding tools for achieving fine polishing of workpieces. 3. Production of resin grinding tools Resin grinding wheels, resin cutting discs, resin grinding plates, ultra-thin sheets and other resin-based grinding tools made by combining F14-F80 grade black corundum sand with brown corundum have in recent years become new application areas for black corundum products. Many well-known resin die manufacturers are using 30 black corundum and 70 brown corundum to manufacture resin dies. Compared with traditional pure brown corundum resin tools, resin tools made from this composite abrasive exhibit significantly improved sharpness and smoother edges, with no noticeable color change on the surface of the workpiece. Due to the relatively low cost of corundum, resin tools using corundum as a composite abrasive offer good cost-performance. 4. Other applications The performance and cost advantages of corundum black have expanded its areas of application. For example, fine-grained corundum is used as an additive in wear-resistant and fire-retardant coatings. Sandblasting is used to age jeans; the shoe industry employs it to add wear-resistant and non-slip materials to the outer side of the shoe heels. Manufacture of unfired refractory materials for fire protection and heat insulation at medium and low temperatures. As people gain a better understanding of the properties of corundum, the application areas for eco-friendly, recyclable corundum products that offer good cost-performance will continue to expand. The above is Qian’s detailed explanation regarding the market situation and future development prospects of black corundum. The applications of black corundum in our daily lives are significant, so its future prospects look very promising! I hope this information can be helpful to everyone. Follow Qianjiaxin Refractory Materials to learn more about abrasives and refractory materials! Gongyi Qianjiaxin Refractory Materials specializes in refractory materials, chemical products, environmental protection materials, silicon carbide, corundum products, bauxite, polishing abrasives, activated carbon, and other products!