Blast Nozzles from Silicon Carbide
(Silicon carbide, chemical formula SiC)
Like boron carbide, silicon carbide is extremely hard and wear resistant, making it a popular material for the manufacture of blast nozzles.
In terms of wear resistance, SiC achieves approximately 25 to 30% of the life of boron carbide when used with highly abrasive blasting media.
Silicon carbide is a chemical compound of silicon and carbon. Silicon carbide is similar in structure and properties to diamond and is one of the hardest abrasives. As a material for blasting nozzles, SiC can be produced by various manufacturing processes, of which SSiC and HP-SiC are the most common.
To produce SSiC, RBI mixes SiC fine powder with sintering additives which undergo a sintering process at temperatures of 2,000 to 2,200°C. This process is used to produce smaller blast nozzles.
Silicon carbide is particularly suitable for abrasives such as glass beads:
- Glass beads
- Glass granules
- Blast furnace slag
- Ceramics
Silicon carbide has a slightly longer service life than tungsten carbide when used with highly abrasive media. The main advantage of SiC over WC is the significantly lower weight of the material.