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The act of toughening is when an outside material, such as a fused mineral, is added to a product to increase the maximum amount of energy a product can absorb without fracturing. 

Tumbling, also known as Mass Finishing, is a technique for smoothing and polishing a rough surface on relatively small parts. Mass finishing media, such as angle cut cylinders, stars, triangles, cones, angle cut stars, wedges, pyramids, and tetrahedrons, is placed in a centrifugal disc machine and spun at high speeds. The media acts as an agent to surface finish parts in various sizes.  In the field of metalworking, a similar process called barreling, or barrel finishing, works upon the same principles.

Wafer slicing is the act of taut steel wire running through an abrasive slurry of silicon carbide. The SiC acts as the cutting agent between the work piece and the wire.Washington Mills’ group graded silicon carbide grains and precision sized powders are used as a loose abrasive in the cutting of silicon wafers.

Aerospace engineering is the designing of aircraft, spacecraft, satellites and missiles, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). It is a complex, scientific, precision-based branch of technology and industry concerned with both aviation and space flight. The manufacture and performance of highly intricate components require a fused mineral manufacturer that can supply consistent abrasive grain for surface preparation on aerospace products such as; turbine blades, engine parts and components, gears, gear shafts, bearings, washers, housing bushings, plate and many more.

Abrasive grains are used to make coated abrasives products such as sandpaper and are available in sheets, discs, rolls, belts, pads, flap wheels, and other forms. In coated abrasives, the abrasive grain is adhered to a cloth, fiber, paper or polyester film by a resin or glue bond. The high hardness of the abrasive grain and its angular sharp edges constantly exposes new edges to the work piece, making the coated abrasive excellent at sanding, polishing, finishing and taking off rough edges. Abrasive grains should exhibit high capillarity for instant adhesion to resin or glue bonds

Coatings act as a protective layer on many different types of surfaces. Coatings optimize the lifetime of important infrastructure such as pipelines, mining equipment, oil rigs, bridges, tunnels, etc. where durability and longevity of the materials are of vital importance. Coatings are used in many different industries, some of which include automotive, aerospace, infrastructure, pipelines, oil & gas, mining, and shipbuilding. Abrasives and fused minerals are a key ingredient in coatings and have two distinct applications; surface preparation and mixes.

In lapping, abrasive materials such as aluminum oxide, emery, and silicon carbide are used as the abrasive to grind the work piece and remove stock from the surface. Lapping provides a way of making surfaces and edge faces extremely flat, smooth, finished and polished.

The most widely used medium, and most compatible with the fluidized bed process, is fused aluminum oxide grains. The fluidized bed process consists of utilizing a high temperature chamber that directs gas through a distributor plate creating a desired atmosphere that serves as a means of bed levitation. When the force of the gas is equal to the weight of the media, a fluidized state is reached. Product finishing can occur in an abrasive fluidized bed when rotating substrates at varying speeds based on the desired finish. The process extends work life in precision tools, aircraft, automotive and other transportation components. Today, fluidized beds are being use in applications such as wire annealing and biomass.

Investment casting is a method of fabricating complex metal shapes by creating a ceramic mold or pattern from which certain metal parts can be made. Fused minerals are an essential material used in the ceramic shell building process. The ceramic shell is built with a variety of fused materials in order to allow it to withstand exposure to very high temperatures throughout the firing and pouring process. Once the ceramic shell has been broken away, the metal part is revealed and, in many instances, needs to be polished or finished with an abrasive material.