Sandblasting

Dry, Wet Sandblasting and Cryogenic Blasting for Polishing and Cleaning Metal, Glass, and Plastic Surfaces

Sandblasting is an abrasive process that basically consists in directing a powerful stream of abrasive material at a surface.

Metals are sandblasted under high pressure to make the raw surface polished, clean, and uniform, eliminating all contaminating substances.

The sandblasting action allows each surface to be treated completely, using the granular consistency of the abrasive materials to remove imperfections.

Industrial sandblasting works in the same way as sandpaper (which is also granular and gives wood a polished appearance and smooth consistency), but with the difference that it uses abrasive material at a high-pressure.

Types of Sandblasting

Sandblasting may rely on four different treatments:

• Dry sandblasting: The abrasive material is directed at a surface with a high-pressure jet of air. The Argos Surface Technologies Group deals exclusively with this type of processing.
• Wet sandblasting: In this case, water is added to the abrasive material.
• Sandblasting with a humidifier: This is still wet sandblasting, but the difference is that the water does not mix with and transfer the abrasive material, but is dispensed separately.
• Cryogenic blasting: A non-abrasive, eco-friendly process. Carbon dioxide is frozen and turned into pellets of dry ice.

Wet sandblasting is preferred in enclosed spaces with little ventilation, given its ability to minimize the spread of dust.

Which Materials Can Industrial Sandblasting Be Used On?

Although reference is often made to sandblasting on metals, this cleaning technique can be applied to a wide range of materials, including:

• glass;
• stone;
• aluminium;
• silver;
• wood;
• brass.

The Argos Group only sandblasts metal surfaces.

What Materials Are Required for Sandblasting?

Depending on the desired results and surface to be treated, sandblasting may rely on different abrasive materials:

• quartz;
• silica sand;
• garnet;
• sodium bicarbonate;
• corn cob;
• glass microspheres;
• aluminium oxide;
• walnut shells.

The Advantages of Sandblasting

Sandblasting is a technique for cleaning and finishing that works on surfaces effectively yet non-aggressively. For this reason, it is perfectly adapted to every material, from the roughest, such as cement, to more delicate ones, such as glass or aluminium.

In addition, no particularly bulky or complex machinery is required.