Aluminum oxide has long been a popular abrasive choice for sandblast and surface preparation when it is desired to avoid contamination and corrosion of parts.
However, did you know that this medium has very few advantages and is an expensive solution compared to stainless steel abrasives?
If you have a shot blasting chamber with recovery capacity, the Stelux grit option is the right choice.
Durability: it is true that Aluminum Oxide can be reused. However, its consumption is about 20 to 50 x greater than stainless steel. Stainless steel shot can therefore be reused dozens, even hundreds of times. Typically, we obtain a consumption of 0.1 to 0.2 lb/sq.ft. vs 3 to 4 lb/sq.ft. for Al2O3 in a typical airblast operation.
Dust: Due to the increased durability, the working environment is greatly improved and the visibility just as much. This has a very big influence on the productivity and the efficiency of your production team. Better visibility also reduces re-blasting and improves the cleanliness of the parts.
Wear: Less dust also means less wear and tear on tips, hoses and seals. Replacing these items becomes less frequent. Dust is very abrasive and harsh on equipment. No dust, less maintenance. In addition, with less dust, you also increase the life of your filters and reduce wear on the ducts and dust collector.
Cost of disposal: Stainless steel is an ecological and eco-responsible solution for several reasons. Having a lower consumption, the volumes of rejections will be reduced by 20 to 40 times!
Product characteristics: The fact that stainless steel has a density 2 times higher than Corundum, it allows it to increase its impact energy. This benefit therefore increases its cleaning efficiency and the possibility of obtaining a higher profile. Also, it's possible to reduce the pressures on the air system to achieve same profile and speed of blasting. Compressed air expensive !
Total cost of use: With much lower consumption, negligible costs of disposal and increased productivity, the total savings can reach 80%! Typically, it costs between $ 2.50 to $ 5/sq.ft for stainless steel shot blasting versus costs of $15 to $25/sq.ft. for aluminum oxide.
Finally, to improve your surface preparation processes on parts sensitive to corrosion, use stainless steel abrasives!
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However, did you know that this medium has very few advantages and is an expensive solution compared to stainless steel abrasives?
If you have a shot blasting chamber with recovery capacity, the Stelux grit option is the right choice.
Here are 6 reasons why you should change:
Durability: it is true that Aluminum Oxide can be reused. However, its consumption is about 20 to 50 x greater than stainless steel. Stainless steel shot can therefore be reused dozens, even hundreds of times. Typically, we obtain a consumption of 0.1 to 0.2 lb/sq.ft. vs 3 to 4 lb/sq.ft. for Al2O3 in a typical airblast operation.
Dust: Due to the increased durability, the working environment is greatly improved and the visibility just as much. This has a very big influence on the productivity and the efficiency of your production team. Better visibility also reduces re-blasting and improves the cleanliness of the parts.
Wear: Less dust also means less wear and tear on tips, hoses and seals. Replacing these items becomes less frequent. Dust is very abrasive and harsh on equipment. No dust, less maintenance. In addition, with less dust, you also increase the life of your filters and reduce wear on the ducts and dust collector.
Cost of disposal: Stainless steel is an ecological and eco-responsible solution for several reasons. Having a lower consumption, the volumes of rejections will be reduced by 20 to 40 times!
Product characteristics: The fact that stainless steel has a density 2 times higher than Corundum, it allows it to increase its impact energy. This benefit therefore increases its cleaning efficiency and the possibility of obtaining a higher profile. Also, it's possible to reduce the pressures on the air system to achieve same profile and speed of blasting. Compressed air expensive !
Total cost of use: With much lower consumption, negligible costs of disposal and increased productivity, the total savings can reach 80%! Typically, it costs between $ 2.50 to $ 5/sq.ft for stainless steel shot blasting versus costs of $15 to $25/sq.ft. for aluminum oxide.
Finally, to improve your surface preparation processes on parts sensitive to corrosion, use stainless steel abrasives!
Contact us to discuss your application.
Iann Bouchard, Eng - Winoa / W Abrasives
iann.bouchard@wabrasives.com - Tel. : 438-989-8554