Effect of mineralogical and microstructural properties on surface roughness and gloss of some ornamental marbles subjected to polishing process

Abstract

High surface finish quality of the produced slabs is generally desirable in the stone processing industry. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation into the effects of mineralogical-petrographical and chemical variables on the surface roughness and glossiness of some selected ornamental marbles subjected to grinding-polishing processes. For this purpose, a series of grinding-polishing procedures were performed on the slabs of three distinct marble types. Roughness and brightness measurements were carried out on predetermined surfaces of marble samples using a stylus profilometer and a glossmeter, respectively. Thin sections were examined by a polarizing microscope for mineralogical-petrographical characterization of the studied marbles. Scanning electron microscopy was used to aid in the identification and characterization of the slab surface morphologies at each polishing stage. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy with energydispersive X-ray spectroscopy were used for the determination of mineralogical and chemical compositions of the samples. Mainly because of the differences in textural and chemical compositions, different levels of microroughness and gloss values were observed for the studied marble varieties. The presence of different mineral phases such as the grain (i.e. calcite to calcite) and phase contacts (i.e. calcite to epidote) greatly affected the heterogeneity of the marbles, resulting with different removal mechanisms under the action of abrasive grits.

Investigation of the Effects of Marble Material Properties on the Surface Quality

“…When analyzed in terms of the chemical content, the higher rate of MgO and the lower rate of CaO in the structure of the Emperador (Table 2) compared to the other marble units are significant. It was stated in previous studies that the increase in MgO ratio in the marble structure has a negative effect on surface roughness and glossiness [8,12], which supports our findings.…”

“…It is seen from Figure 3 that roughness values follow an exponentially decreasing trend towards the end of the abrasive series, while it is exponentially increasing for glossiness values for the majority of the surface finish operations as expected [2,4,5,7,8]. It is clear that small abrasive numbers 60, 80, and 120 with coarse abrasive grains have a more prominent effect on the decrease in surface roughness, and finer-grained abrasives (360, 600, and 800) cause a significant increase in surface glossiness values but the most pronounced effect is due to 5 Extra and Pulitore.…”

“…It has not been clearly demonstrated whether the value of the Böhme abrasion loss correlates with the polished marble surface roughness. Gürcan et al [8] emphasized that different microroughness levels and gloss values were observed due to the different textures and chemical compositions of marble samples studied. Ersoy et al [9] investigated the effect of abrasive head rotation on the surface quality and revealed that smoother and brighter surfaces are obtained by increasing the abrasive head's rotational speed.…”

Yüksek Sıcaklığın Doğal Taşların Petrografik, Parlaklık ve Pürüzlülük Özelliklerine Etkisi

“…Sonuç olarak, yüksek sıcaklığın (700 o C ve üzeri) doğal taĢların mineralojik yapısında bozulmalara neden olmasından dolayı numunelerin parlaklık değerlerinde azalıĢ ve pürüzlülük değerlerinde artıĢ gözlenmiĢtir. [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]. Chakrabarti ve arkadaĢları [1] yaptıkları çalıĢmada yangının doğal taĢın fiziksel ve mekanik özelliklerine olan etkisini araĢtırmıĢtır.…”

Application of Response Surface Methodology and Central Composite Inscribed Design for Modeling and Optimization of Marble Surface Quality

“…Many researchers have conducted studies aimed at decreasing the cost of polishing and have investigated parameters affecting surface quality. The effects of mineralogicalpetrographical and chemical variables on the surface roughness and glossiness were investigated by Gürcan et al [2]. The effects of mineral composition, structure, joint fillings of the stone, and the angular relationship between cutting direction and crystal orientation were investigated by Erdogan [3].…”