Types of Waterjet Cutting Garnet Abrasive

Garnet is a hard mineral typically rated between 7.0 and 7.5 on the Mohs scale. Garnet is also relatively chemically inert and will not react with materials being cut, making its disposal simpler. These qualities are advantageous in waterjet machining.

This alluvial garnet is typically found in deposits in river beds or natural hollows and has been smoothed by a steady flow of water. Both river and beach garnet suffer from the tumbling effect of thousands of years which rounds off the edges.

The rock garnet is embedded in a host rock which, after being crushed in mills and washed, is separated out. Being freshly crushed, this garnet has the sharpest edges and consequently performs far better than other types of garnet.