Inovatec MachineryThe leading turbine blade manufacturer in China.

Turbine Blade Polishing – The Definitive Guide

Turbines are essential machines that we use in our day to day life, either in our cars or even jets.

Now, to achieve maximum performance on polishing turbine blades is not easy.

A single mistake can lead to fatal disasters. It can even lead to the loss of lives.

It is not an easy process, especially if you are new to the field.

Today, in this article, you are going to learn:

• How to safely polish turbine blades
• Which mass finishing machines to use when polishing turbine blades
• The benefits of polishing turbine blades

Keep reading this article to find out more.

1. Which is the ideal mass finishing machine for polishing turbine blades?

Now, when polishing turbine blades, you can use three different types of mass finishing machines.

The first machine you can use is the industrial vibratory tumbler, which polishes exceptionally well.

The second machine that you can use to polish turbine blades is a centrifugal disc finishing machine.

The last machine that you can use is the drag finish machine.

The drag finish works excitingly and uniquely, as you’ll learn later on.

These mass finishing machines, when used effectively, can be used to polish your turbine blades to perfection.

2. Which polishing media is used when polishing turbine blades?

There are two different types of media that you can use to polish your turbine blades.

The first polishing media is the porcelain abrasive, which is robust and polishes extremely well.

Porcelain media is usually fine, with elements of ceramic material. It is not as robust as ceramic or stainless steel media.

This makes it suitable for polishing and burnishing your turbine blades.

However, there may be visible burrs on the surface of your turbine. Burrs are not good.

You can remove them by using a robust polishing media, the ceramic tumbling media.

Both ceramic and porcelain polishing media come in different shapes and sizes.

The reason behind these dynamics in polishing is because not all turbine blades are similar in shape.

You’ll need to clean even the most intricate corners of your turbine blades.

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Turbines are exposed to hundreds of hours of extreme heat and environmental corrosion.

The heat further makes the turbine blades black.

A simple polish using porcelain polishing media will make the blades shine – as if they were new.

A minor hitch caused by a turbine blade can cause significant damages, leading even to the loss of lives.

The problem with burrs is that they cause the miscalculation of dimensions and cause rapid wear and tear.

They further make your blades look ugly. That is the primary reason why ceramic media is used.

3. How long does polishing turbine blades take?

Now, polishing turbine blades using mass finishing machines takes only minutes or several hours, depending on the process.

A simple polish using porcelain media can take a few minutes, perhaps half an hour.

When the turbine blades need deburring, the process can take up to a few hours, depending on the degree of deburring required.

Mass finishing machines are ideal for polishing turbine blades over hand polishing.

The reason behind that is that many turbine blades can be processed in a single cycle.

4. How does a vibratory polishing machine polish turbine blades?

Now, when polishing turbine blades using a vibratory tumbling machine, the process is relatively easy.

However, you still have to take caution, because damaging your blades can occur in a blink of an eye.

The vibratory tumbler has a robust motor that is used to vigorously shake the bowl of the tumbler.

The vigorous shaking is what creates the tumbling effect by generating friction.

Friction is necessary when improving the surface of turbine blades. It also acts as a catalyst to the process.

The industrial vibratory polishing machine has some exceptional features that make it less challenging to polish smaller turbine blades.

The first feature is the separation funnel that is used to separate the polishing media and turbine blades.

It can be adjusted to cater to different sizes of polishing media.

With the use of this separating funnel, the process becomes easier with the minimum possibility of losing your tiny blades.

The second feature is the soundproof cover, which helps to make the process less noisy.

The cover also prevents the spillage of polishing compounds.

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The best thing about using a vibratory tumbler is that it does not alter the shape or design of your turbine blades.

You can set the ideal working parameters of the vibratory tumbler using its control console.

The control console allows you to interact with the machine by setting the duration of the process.

It also allows you to set the vibration speed.

Bottom line:

The vibratory polishing machine is an exceptional polishing machine.

Its benefits surpass its downsides.

5. How does a centrifugal disc polishing machine polish turbine blades?

The centrifugal disc polishing machine is yet another exemplary turbine blade polishing machine.

It has a working principle like that of a fruit blender.

It has a container where you place your turbine blades, together with polishing media.

It then has a disc at the bottom of the container that spins at remarkably high speeds.

The walls of the container are stationary, which is a design aimed to enhance the polishing process.

When the disc at the bottom of the container spins, then it generates centrifugal force.

The polishing media then abrades your turbine blades to the desired degree.

The stationary walls are necessary for the process to have balance because it reduces the centrifugal force.

It works rapidly and effectively without damaging your turbine blades.

Similar to the vibratory tumbler, the centrifugal disc finishing machine also has an impressive control console.

You can still set the duration of the process and the rotation speed of the disc.

The machine also comes with a lid that is occasionally used to prevent polishing media from getting off the machine.

It works faster than most mass finishing machines, including the vibratory tumbler.

Bottom line:

The centrifugal disc finishing machine is a beautiful machine that can polish your turbine blades effectively.

It is also efficient and robust.

6. How does a drag finishing machine polish turbine blades?

A drag finishing machine is a unique mass finishing machine for turbine blade polishing.

A drag finishing machine is under the category of specialty finishing machines.

It polishes by clamping the workpieces in specially designed holders that rotate.

The workpieces are then dragged in a circular motion through polishing media in a drum.

The processing drum rises when you command the polishing machine to begin the polishing process.

This makes the machine less laborious while cleaning your turbine blades to perfection.

You can achieve a mirror finish with this machine.

The circular rotation is usually done at high speeds to cause more significant contact between the target turbine blades and polishing media.

The machine is beneficial to you, especially if you have many parts to polish.

The machine is more sophisticated than the vibratory tumbler and the centrifugal disc finishing machine.

7. What are the benefits of polishing turbine blades using mass finishing machines?

There are undoubtedly numerous benefits of using these mass finishing machines when polishing your turbine blades.

The first benefit is that you can finish multiple blades at the same time.

These machines, as their names suggest, polish many turbine blades in a single cycle.

The second benefit is that the polishing of your turbine blades is less stressful.

When polishing manually, all the processes are dependent on you, and the risk of damaging these blades is high.

However, with these mass finishing machines, you can polish exceptionally well with a low risk of damaging your turbine blades.

The third benefit is that these mass finishing machines polish well because they achieve a uniform finishing.

Polishing manually needs a lot of experience and skill to achieve a smooth polish.

You also have to understand that every blade of the turbine has to be perfect for the maximum output of power.

You can also command these machines to polish your turbine blades using the control console.

These control consoles are pretty straightforward to use.

When polishing using these mass finishing machines, special features can be added to improve the process.

For example, when polishing smaller blades using a vibratory tumbler, it is not mandatory to separate blades and media manually.

You can use the separation funnel, which is highly effective.

The fourth benefit is that these machines require minimal maintenance costs, and they are not costly to acquire.

The reason behind this is that these machines have become popular nowadays. They are widely used.

Bottom line:

Mass finishing machines can be used to polish your turbine blades effectively.

They are low in cost and achieve an excellent finish.

They are also better to use than using manual means to polish.