The bond that ensures an efficient cut-off

Cut-off grinding, one of the most efficient and productive machining techniques for cutting plain carbon, high-alloy, special-alloy and hardened steels, offers a diverse range of advantages compared to other cutting techniques:

  • It cuts alloys that other techniques, such as sawing, can only cut with prohibitively high effort or often not at all.

However, the process is by no means easy to command. The art of manufacturing good cut-off wheels presupposes the ability to design and manufacture wheels with the exactly right ratio of diameter to thickness. Thinner wheels produce thinner and cleaner cuts and therefore waste less material. A couple of figures clearly illustrate what “thin” means for cut-off wheels: a ratio of less than 1% of the outer circumference to the thickness is considered ideal and is therefore targeted. Thus, a large cut-off wheel with a 2,000 mm diameter would have a thickness of less than 20 mm. And, not to be forgotten, it must be tapered to permit clean, unhampered cutting. If one considers that such a thin wheel is exposed to the force created by 500 kW during cold cutting and temperatures of 600° to 1,100°C in hot cutting, it is easy to understand that a great deal of engineering and manufacturing expertise is required to build good cut-off wheels. RAPPOLD possesses a unique abundance of know-how and skill. A single fact demonstrates the truth of this claim: the company, located in Villach, Austria, is the only company in the world with the capability to fabricate cut-off wheels in diameters of more than 1,670 mm.

RAPPOLD is currently concentrating its research efforts on three specific areas, focussing on improved cut cleanness, reduced wear and improved environmental properties. The areas a

  • Cut-off wheels for operation at higher speeds
  • New combinations of abrasives and bonds
  • New material combinations for the hub of the cut-off wheel

RAPPOLD recently achieved success in the latter area of focus. In collaboration with BÖHLER Edelstahl, it succeeded in designing a 2,005 mm diameter steel composite cut-off wheel, which is now in serial production. Cut-off wheels consist of 60 percent recyclable metallic cores and up to 40 percent active abrasive or cutting zones that are pressed onto the circumference of the steel core. Such a cutting zone constitutes a technological breakthrough and offers the advantage of lower material utilisation in contrast to conventional, large cut-off wheels.