How to Prevent Alumina Wear Ceramics from Breaking During Use?

1. Optimize Material Selection Based on Working Conditions

• High-alumina content for heavy-load scenarios: For high-impact working conditions (e.g., ore conveying pipelines in mines, coal mill chutes in power plants), select ceramics with alumina content ≥ 92% (preferably 95%–99%). High-purity alumina ceramics have denser crystal structures, higher hardness (≥ HRA 85), and better impact toughness, which can resist the impact of large particles.
• Reinforced composite ceramics for extreme environments: In scenarios with alternating thermal shocks (e.g., high-temperature flue ducts in cement plants), choose alumina-zirconia composite ceramics or ceramic-rubber composite plates. The composite structure combines the wear resistance of ceramics and the elasticity of rubber, effectively absorbing impact energy and preventing thermal cracking.
• Avoid low-quality products: Reject ceramics with obvious internal pores, cracks, or uneven surfaces. Such defects are stress concentration points and will easily expand and cause fracture under external force.

2. Standardize Installation and Fixing Processes

• Surface pretreatment of the base: Before pasting ceramics, clean the surface of the equipment base (steel plate, pipeline inner wall) to remove oil, rust, and dust, and roughen the surface by sandblasting. A rough surface can enhance the bonding force between the adhesive and the base, preventing the ceramic from peeling and breaking due to weak adhesion.
• Choose the right adhesive: Use high-strength heat-resistant epoxy adhesives (or ceramic special adhesives) suitable for industrial environments. The adhesive should have good impact resistance, temperature resistance (matching the working temperature of the equipment), and corrosion resistance. Apply the adhesive evenly, with a thickness of 0.5–1 mm, and avoid air bubbles in the adhesive layer (air bubbles will cause local stress concentration).
• Reasonable splicing and gap treatment: When laying ceramic tiles, leave a expansion gap of 0.5–1 mm between adjacent ceramics to adapt to thermal expansion and contraction of the equipment during operation, avoiding extrusion and cracking of ceramics. For large-area laying, use a staggered arrangement (like bricklaying) to improve the overall stability of the ceramic layer.
• Reinforcement for high-impact parts: For key parts subject to strong impact (e.g., the inlet of the chute, the elbow of the pipeline), add steel backing plates or metal retaining strips on the back or edge of the ceramics to fix them, reducing direct impact on the ceramics.

3. Standardize Equipment Operation and Reduce Abnormal Loads

• Control the feeding state: Avoid feeding large, hard foreign bodies (e.g., steel bars, stones) into the equipment. In mines and cement plants, install grates or magnetic separators at the feeding port to filter out foreign bodies that may cause impact damage to ceramics.
• Avoid sudden start-stop and overload operation: Sudden start-stop of equipment (e.g., belt conveyors, crushers) will cause instant impact of materials on the ceramic lining; long-term overload operation will increase the friction and impact force on the ceramic surface. Operate the equipment according to the rated load, and start/stop it smoothly.
• Control the working temperature range: Alumina ceramics have poor thermal shock resistance. Avoid rapid temperature changes of the equipment (e.g., sudden cooling of high-temperature pipelines). If the equipment involves high-temperature working conditions, preheat the equipment before starting to make the ceramic temperature rise evenly.

4. Regular Inspection and Maintenance

• Daily visual inspection: Regularly check the surface of the ceramic lining for cracks, peeling, or chipping. Mark the damaged parts in time and repair them to avoid the expansion of cracks under continuous impact.
• Periodic adhesive strength inspection: For pasted ceramics, use a hammer to tap the surface gently (with moderate force) to check for hollowing. Hollowing indicates that the adhesive layer has failed, and the ceramic should be re-pasted in time.
• Timely repair of damaged parts: For small-area damaged ceramics, remove the damaged parts, clean the base surface again, and re-paste new ceramics. For large-area damage, replace the entire ceramic lining to ensure the overall protection effect.

5. Auxiliary Measures to Reduce Wear Impact

• Install buffer devices: Set buffer plates (e.g., rubber plates, polyurethane plates) at the material drop point to reduce the direct impact force of materials on the ceramic lining.
• Optimize the flow channel structure: Improve the equipment flow channel (e.g., pipeline elbows, chute inner walls) to make the material flow smoothly, reduce the eddy current and local impact of materials on the ceramics, and minimize concentrated wear.