The production process in the manufacture of abrasive tools starts with the backing material. This is furnished with a corresponding base binding, and, after applying the abrasive grits, the top bonding layer is laid on.
Backing Material
Depending on the expected thermal and mechanical strains, paper, fabric, vulcanized fibre or combinations of these materials are used as backing materials.
Paper exhibits the lowest strength characteristic values, so it is used primarily in hand-operated finishing procedures and above all in wood finishing. Its insensitivity to resultant abrasive heat is also especially advantageous in this case [SCHM73]. Abrasive papers are subdivided according to their size per unit area into classes A (70 g/m2) to F (280 g/m2), whereby tensile strength goes up with increasing size [N. N.3].
Grinding processes with higher mechanical tool strain demand woven backing materials, whereby both natural and plastic fibres are used. Modifications in strength can be realised by varying web design as well as the fibre material.
Polyester fabrics have proven to have the highest tensile strength values. Thus, they are utilised for high strains in metal machining. Similar to abrasive papers, the fabrics are also graded by letters (J to Y), which characterise the backing material’s strength.
Should the grinding process require a particularly long-wearing tool, fibres are used as the carrier medium. The adjustment of material rigidity to the processing task at hand takes place by means of an appropriate choice of material thickness.