{"id":5720,"date":"2021-08-01T06:00:31","date_gmt":"2021-08-01T11:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.codinter.com\/en\/?p=5720"},"modified":"2023-05-25T07:36:06","modified_gmt":"2023-05-25T12:36:06","slug":"sandblasting-media-all-the-types-and-uses-for-each-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.codinter.com\/en\/sandblasting-media-all-the-types-and-uses-for-each-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Sandblasting Media: All the types and uses for each one"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Choosing the right sandblasting media is, arguably, one of the most important decisions to make when any surface should be blasted.<\/p>

Many production plants have one or some sandblasting equipment to use, and just the media should be changed, according to the surface and finishing required. Every surface and finishing desired may require a different media, for optimal results.<\/p>

Even more, new materials and types of sandblasting media are available from time to time. As an example, despite the process is known as sandblasting, sand is not used anymore, due to the risk of silicosis.\u00a0So, to make the best decision, let\u2019s start by understanding the basics.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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What is the media in sandblasting?<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Simply put, sandblasting media is any abrasive that cleans, prepares, or finishes a surface. This blasting is a controlled eroding of the surface. This media is beamed through a piece of sandblasting equipment.<\/p>

The surface to be blasted and the desired finishing are the key points to define what sandblasting media should be used. Other parameters that play a key role in choosing the right sandblasting media are available processing time and production output.<\/p>

Obviously, the surface to be blasted, the sandblasting media chosen, and the required finish will define the right equipment to use and how many PSI the air compressor should provide.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Five materials sandblasting media is made of<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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All the types of sandblasting media are made of five basic materials, which are: organic, metal, silicate, plastic, and stone. Let\u2019s review each one of them.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Organic<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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This is the media made of materials present in nature. Among these are walnut shells, corn cobs, etc. Since they are softer than other common materials are useful for more delicate applications like polishing or cleaning. They leave surfaces largely unscathed. A big advantage of this media, besides being part of nature and non-toxic, is that is reusable, due to its resistance to breakdown.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Silicate<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Historically, silicate sand has been part of sandblasting, but lately is used less and less. Actually, its use is forbidden in the US and in Europe, due to the risk of silicosis. Any media that contains more than 1% de silica can cause health-related issues for the operator and all the people around.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Metal<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Among all the sandblasting media available are aluminum oxide, steel shots, and grits, and more. Glass beads, black beauty, and copper slag are also to be included in this list. Usually, metal abrasives are angular and used for heavy-duty sandblasting jobs.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Plastic<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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There are many plastic abrasives that come from different compounds like polycarbonate and polystyrene. Since its composition can be molded, they hugely vary regarding hardness, size, density, etc. Plastic media is regularly less dense than metal and the resultant finishing is also softer than those.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Stone<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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The most important abrasive derived from stone is Staurolite. One of the best features this media offers is a smaller dust cloud.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Five ways to categorize each type of sandblasting media<\/h2>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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There are five main ways to categorize sandblasting media, according to its features, as follow:<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Shape<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Each sandblasting media can come in one out of four possible shapes, which are angular, sub-angular, round, and sub-rounded. As the designation describes, angular media has sharper sides than the sub-angular, but both are used for aggressive abrasive blasting.<\/p>

In the case of round and sub-rounded media, it happens the opposite way. They are used more often for mild abrasive blasting.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Hardness<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Each type of sandblasting media has a different degree of hardness. That is useful because different hardness is required for different jobs. For example, the hardness needed for sandblasting wood is quite different than the one used for removing hard epoxy coatings.<\/p>

Regarding hardness, the rule of thumb is to choose the abrasive with the minimum hardness required for the job.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Size<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Sandblasting media is sized based on mesh screens ranging from 8 up to 400. With this we mean the size mesh the media particles will fit through. A mesh size of 10 has 10 holes per square inch. For this space, even the big particles can go through. Now, a mesh of 100 has 100 holes in the same square inch. Definitely, only smaller particles will go through this.<\/p>

The experts\u2019 opinion on this matter is to use the smallest media that will allow reaching the desired finish.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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Surface Prep made easy<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Apply Sandblasting like a pro<\/h3>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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