What is a sand blasting machine?
Shot blasting systems are used in many industrial fields for mechanical processing, cleaning, finishing or improving the strength of metals.
The process involves subjecting the piece to a jet of spherical or angular metal shot or another abrasive. There are different types of shot blasting systems: the simplest are those consisting of manual compressed air sandblasting machines while the automatic systems use a turbine powered by an engine to increase the output speed of the abrasive. Using a shot blasting system changes the surface of the treated piece which can undergo different processes depending on its final use.
What are the applications of a shot blasting system?
There are few industrial sectors that do not make use of the shot blasting process at some point during production or do not directly benefit from it. It does not matter if sandblasting is a fundamental part of the production line or just a phase of the production processes: choosing the correct system allows you to save resources, reduce wear and tear on machinery and ensure the highest standards in the most demanding situations.
The sectors of application of shot blasting systems are different and for each of them it is important to choose the correct system to allow operators to work more efficiently and quickly.
The possible types of processing are:
- shot blasting treatment in preparation for painting;
- desanding of foundry pieces;
- descaling of sheets, profiles and forged;
- shot peening of springs and gears;
- sandblasting of concrete, stone and marble products;
- shot blasting and removal of small burrs from die-cast aluminum or molded parts;
- stripping of racks or steel products, etc.
Types of shot blasting systems
As mentioned above, shot blasting machines are divided into two major macro-categories: turbine and compressed air. Turbine plants in turn can be of different types: roller conveyor, wire mesh conveyor, tunnel, continuous flow, steel belt tumblast, hook, rotary table.
Even compressed air systems can be categorized into 3 different types:
- Free jet are used in the construction sector to sandblast building facades or to work outdoors. The abrasive is generally loose but there are also sandblasting machines with abrasive recovery;
- Sandblasting chamber is a real chamber where even large pieces can be sandblasted. In this case the operator directs the abrasive flow with the nozzle, managing to sandblast pieces with irregular shapes. Due to its characteristics, compared to turbine plants, production is more limited. To recover the abrasive, a transport system conveys residues and an abrasive to a bucket elevator, which sends it to a dedusting system and filter.
- Cabin is mostly used to work on small pieces. The operator introduces both arms and works within the space circumscribed by the cabin.
Choosing the correct abrasive
There are many different types of abrasive and the parameters that characterize them can be: shape, size, material, specific weight and hardness. As regards the chemical composition, the grits are divided into: vegetable (fruit kernels, corn cob, etc.), plastics, minerals (olivine, garnet, corundum, etc.), metal (cast steel, drawn cylinder), non-ferrous (aluminum, zinc, copper).
The contribution of Winoa
With 50 years of experience Winoa is able to progressively optimize the sandblasting process with specific product ranges for any type of application. The sales team with the technical support provided by 25 experts and also thanks to the tests in our test centers, can prove that cost reduction is not a dream but a reality.
