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In the barrel polishing technique, mass finishing media is used. What do we mean by barrel polishing? Well, it is quite a commonly used process in abrasive industry, e.g., weaving machinery, accessories, auto parts, hardware tools and bearing industry, It is also widely used in electronic units, manufacturing watch parts, as well. The major applications of this process are: • Coarse grinding • Medium grinding • Polishing As far as the key elements of this process are concerned, they are: • Grinding media • Grinding fluid • Polishing equipment This process is also known as different names such that barrel media, abrasive media or grinding stone. Types and categories of mass finishing There are four categories of mass finishing media based on the abrasive block materials. • Ceramic: Here sintered ceramic bonding agents are used along with abrasive grains. • Natural abrasives: Plant pit and natural minerals make the nature abrasive grain mix. The crushing and screening process uses this mix. Typical materials used are cobble, wood blocks, walnut, natural corundum and saw powder. • Recyclable waste abrasives: Abrasive blocks made up of waste and recycled material are used in this category. • Resin abrasives: In this media, resin bonding agents and filler curing are used in at the normal temperature. Ceramic and resin are the most popularly used mass finishing media. Size of the media What type of grinding is required; coarse, medium or polishing? Well, the expectation of workpiece plays an important role when you choose the media. For scale cinder or burring, coarse and medium grinding is fine. For improving the surface roughness, fine grinding is used. When you need surface dressing or enhancement in the luminance, fine finishing should be used. Choice of specification What is the appearance and size of axial groove you need in the finished material? It decides what type of mass finishing media should be used. Similarly, the quantity of the media also depends on the specifications given. If the abrasive blocks are less, then the surface of the workpiece will be rough and the polishing amount will be large. And it gets finished fast. Typically, the proportion of workpiece to abrasive block is 1:1 or 1:1.5. If we increase the proportion, then the polishing amount will reduce, and the workpiece will be rough. Water also plays a major role in the quality of grinding and polishing. The quantity should be decided based on the requirement specification. Mass finishing media is in high demand in surface finishing industries. They can help in quick and bulk finishing of machined products.
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