Wheelabrator intensifies wear parts research

The blasting technology specialist Wheelabrator has invested in its metallographic laboratory at the German Wheelabrator Technology Centre. The aim is to accelerate advances in wear parts innovation.

According to Wheelabrator, it has systematically expanded its testing facilities in recent years. Research is focussed on wear parts for blast wheels and the question of how the operating costs of corresponding processes can be reduced. "The wear tests commonly done in the industry are complete black boxes. You just run different sets of blades under controlled conditions and see which one lasts the longest,’ explains Christian Timmer, Global Head of Testing at Wheelabrator. The problem is that you never really find out why one lasts longer than the other. "We need to know why, so we can optimize," says Timmer.

The new equipment, which includes cutting, grinding and polishing tools as well as a state-of-the-start digital microscope allows the team to analyze the microstructure of metallic parts and see the effect of heat treatment and variations in the chemical make-up of the material. "In our tests we’ve seen wheel blades made from the same material but from different suppliers showing a huge range in operating life," says Timmer. The difference is in the microstructure, which the laboratory can now visualise in a very short time. "It helps us understand why a specific part has performed well and build on that, but it also gives us a faster way of assessing new wear parts and suppliers,” says Timmer.

Wheelabrator stated that it has invested a total of 80,000 euros in the laboratory and the new equipment.

Featured photo: Wheelabrator