How to Identify the Maximum Operating Speed of a Diamond Blade
Blog | September 24th, 2019There’s not much that can stop a high-performance diamond blade when it gets going. Subject to its operational specifications, the right blade can cut through blocks of concrete or slabs of quartz. Alternatively, by slowing the blade and equipping it with fine-grained gems, it’ll slice cleanly through glass or ceramic tiles. Anyway, aside from those diamonds, it’s the blade’s operating speed that decides cutting performance.
Determining Operational Speed Limits
As a general rule of thumb, a 50 to 60 metre per second rotational velocity is used when a technician operates a diamond cutting tool. This spread varies to accommodate changes in blade geometry and diamond types. The softness or hardness rating of the diamond bonding matrix also impacts the tool’s operational speed. If the cutting medium is dense and full of abrasive elements, expect the blade to spin slower. If the material is soft, like a masonry brick or ceramic tile, the diamond edged tool will probably experience a subsequent rise in cutting velocity.
Handling High-Speed Frictional Energies
So far so good, these facts are viewed as common sense operator tips. After all, by operating a diamond blade above 60 m/s on an abrasive and hard cutting medium, it’ll generate frictional heat, which will likely cause tool damage and premature diamond wear. The only way to circumvent this issue is to increase the flow rate of the equipment’s liquid coolant. And yes, these are wet blades. With dry blades, the disc velocity drops below the 50 m/s lower limit, for there’s no liquid to keep the diamonds cool. Basically, to keep everything running, the operator should consult the blade speed table in the tool manual or blade datasheet.
Manufacturer-Set Blade Tensioning
In this field of work, it’s not just the blade geometry and rim profile that affect its minimum and maximum rotating velocity, nor is it the fact that the diamonds and bonding agent age. On top of both of these lifespan-shortening problems, there’s the fact that the metal disc has been specially tensioned so that it’ll operate properly at a quoted operational speed. If the tool settings exceed that operational threshold, then the tensioned metal could well warp and break. Like an unbalanced car wheel, the high-speed wobble could cause a nasty accident.
Fundamentally set in stone, the operational speed of a stated diamond-inlaid cutting blade should never be ignored. As a best-case scenario, the diamonds will heat up and abrade. They’ll fracture and age and something very similar will happen to the bonding agent. In short, the tool won’t last as long as it should. Worst-case, the tensioned cutting disc will develop a nasty wobble, which could undermine its performance. If that wobble worsens, the blade will warp and break.
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