Abrasive Regeneration via pH-Controlled Organic Acid Aggregation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current methods for recycling abrasives from used abrasive-containing slurries result in abrasives of insufficient purity, which are not suitable for fine polishing, and require significant resources and investment, posing environmental and economic burdens.
Innovation Solution
A method involving the collection of abrasive-containing slurry, separation and concentration using an alkaline earth metal salt as an inorganic salt to aggregate the abrasive, and subsequent collection, maintaining a pH of less than 10.0, which allows for efficient and simple regeneration of high-purity abrasives.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional methods (electrolytes, coagulants, pH adjustment to 10 or higher) are used to aggregate and separate abrasive from used slurry, then separation efficiency is improved, but the purity of collected abrasive deteriorates due to co-aggregation of glass components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the pH parameter from conventional high pH (10 or higher) to a controlled range of 6-9, and uses organic acids (formic, acetic, propionic acid) instead of conventional electrolytes and coagulants. This parameter change prevents co-aggregation of glass components while maintaining efficient abrasive separation, resolving the contradiction between separation efficiency and abrasive purity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces organic acids as intermediary substances that selectively interact with abrasive particles to promote aggregation without causing glass component co-aggregation. These organic acids act as mediators that differentiate between abrasive and glass components, enabling high-purity separation while maintaining separation efficiency
2Manufacturing precision
If high-purity abrasive collection is achieved through multiple purification steps, then abrasive purity is improved, but process complexity and resource consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes glass components from the slurry in a single separation step using organic acids, collecting high-purity abrasive without requiring multiple subsequent purification steps. This extraction approach achieves high purity while simplifying the overall process, resolving the contradiction between abrasive purity and process complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary separation of abrasive from glass components at the beginning of the process using organic acid treatment, preventing contamination that would require later purification. This preliminary action achieves high purity abrasive collection while minimizing the need for complex subsequent processing steps
3Object-affected harmful factors
If conventional disposal methods (incineration, neutralization) are used for abrasive waste liquid, then environmental compliance is improved, but disposal cost and resource loss increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent discards only the liquid portion containing glass components after separation, while recovering and reusing the aggregated abrasive particles. This selective discarding and recovering approach eliminates abrasive loss that occurs in conventional incineration methods, while the separated liquid can be treated and discharged with reduced environmental burden
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the treatment approach from complete destruction (incineration) to selective separation and recovery. By using organic acids to selectively aggregate abrasive particles, the process enables recovery of valuable abrasive materials while the remaining liquid can be environmentally compliantly disposed, resolving the contradiction between environmental compliance and substance loss
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method enables the efficient collection and regeneration of high-purity abrasives, reducing the need for subsequent purification steps and minimizing environmental impact while lowering disposal costs.
Implementation Method 1
adding an alkaline earth metal salt as an inorganic salt to the collected abrasive-containing slurry and aggregating the abrasive
Implementation Method 2
separating the abrasive from a mother liquid and concentrating the abrasive
Data Source
AI summary
Technique to provide an abrasive regeneration method which, from a used abrasive slurry, can recover an abrasive by an efficient method and can thereafter obtain a high-purity regenerated abrasive by a simple method. This abrasive regeneration method uses an abrasive comprising at least one type of abrasive selected from diamond, boron nitride, silicon carbide, alumina, alumina zirconia and zirconium oxide. The abrasive regeneration involves a slurry recovery step (A) for recovering an abrasive slurry discharged from a polishing machine, a separation and concentration step (B) for adding an alkaline earth metal salt as an inorganic salt to the recovered abrasive slurry to aggregate the abrasive, and separating and concentrating the abrasive from a mother liquor, and an abrasive recovery step (C) for recovering the separated and concentrated abrasive.