Abrasion is the process of tearing particles off a material by friction against other material that will nearly always be harder than the former. The act of rubbing one part against another to modify its geometric shape or to sharpen it, comes from primitive man's instinct.

The most important fact is that abrasion process corrects errors from preceding processes as tooling process.

From the above definition we conclude that abrasives are tools bound for abrasion processes.

Industrial activities' increase made it necessary to obtain abrasives grains with controlled characteristics. Research in this field attained its first success with the discovery of Carborundum (SiC) and aluminum oxide AL₂O₃ (alumina).

Due to market requirements for processes' rationalizing and automation, changes in numerical control machines resulted in demand for more reliable abrasives, of constant quality and high productivity, as superabrasives (synthetic diamond, Cubic Boron Niter) and high performance aluminum oxide based ceramic material.

ALUMINUM OXIDE

Abrasive Aluminum Oxide is obtained by grounded and oxidized bauxite mixed with a low percentage of coke iron, Ti and MgO₂. Fusion occurs at a temperature ranging from 1900° and 2000°C, in an arc furnace during a 36 hours period, while cooling process can take a week. The block obtained is then fractured and grounded.

 Conventional Aluminum Oxides

These grains are extremely strong and their wedge shape allows quick penetration without fracture or excessive waste. Therefore, it is used on material with high traction resistance as steel and its alloys, on nodulous and flexible cast iron and also in case of using sanders, on non-ferrous material.

 Zirconic Aluminum Oxides

These are Aluminum Oxide abrasive grains and Zirconic Oxide combined, constituted of crystals obtained from Zirconic Sand and Alumina fusion, at a nearly 1900°C temperature, followed by cooling. These grains have very sharp edges renewed during the process. They cut for a longer period with less heat, ideal for quick cutting and thinning out applications.

 Ceramic Aluminum Oxides

These abrasive grains have a sub-micrometrical crystal controlled structure, derived from an exclusive sinter process. They have superior hardness and resistance when compared to conventional Aluminum Oxides obtained by fusion process. To be used in hard grinding materials, when productivity, quality and cost reduction need maximizing.

CARBORUNDUM

Carborundum is obtained in a metal crucible, flowing the electrical current, with the help of a carbon electrode, through clay and coke powder mixture, forming around the electrode carborundum crystals. The industrial production of carborundum occurs in electric furnaces with silica (white clay) and petroleum coke in a 60% to 40%, respectively, percentage mixture. Production temperature goes from 1900° to 2400°C, and the cycle takes 36 to 40 hours. Carborundum color ranges from light green to black depending on the impurity.
We recommend carborundum abrasives to work on material with low traction resistance, non-ferrous and non-metallic, as gray cast iron, bronze, brass, aluminum, ceramics, marble, granite, refractory, plastics, rubber, etc.

DIAMOND

Diamond is used on hard, fragile and small chip materials as: hard metal, ceramics, copper, quartz, ferrite, graphite, fiberglass, gems and others.

BORNITRIDE (CBN - CUBIC BORON NITER)

Bornitride is employed in ferrous materials, carbonaceous, like steels and iron tic. Though it does not have diamond's hardness, bornitride does not present the graphitizing phenomenon that occurs while working steel in high temperatures, when diamonds change their chemical structure, loosing hardness and causing the grain to prematurely come loose from the agglutinant.