Automated instrument for assessing abrasives

Abstract

An automated instrument for monitoring the destructive compressive load on abrasive grains (measuring 400–1250 μm) between two rotating rollers has been developed. A modernized version of the instrument also permits determination of the grain size, shape, and microgeometric and topographic characteristics of abrasives. Equipped with a photometric unit and a module for processing numerical information, the modernized instrument permits multiple recording of each particle by six cameras (in both directions along three orthogonal axes), with assessment of the microgeometry. Such information regarding the grains, along with identification of their shape (plates, needles, isometric form, etc.), permits their quality assessment; their subsequent separation on vibrational sorters; and their most effective use in the abrasive machining of materials characterized by different hardness, brittleness, and composition, including composites.