Every customer has a question in their mind how M sand is manufactured? We have a detailed answer to this question in this article.
Off late, M sand or manufactured sand is rising in popularity. With the fast depletion of natural sand and over-excavation of river beds, the need for M sand in the construction industry has grown exponentially. Therefore, artificially manufactured sand is emerging as a sustainable alternative to the natural river sand. That is because it helps to protect the environment. It also fares better in its physical and chemical properties because of the controlled manufacturing process.
Despite drawing much attention from environmentalists and government authorities, many builders are still unsure about its safety and economic viability.
So, many would question – is it suitable for use in construction activity?
From the perspective of civil engineers, the answer is a big ‘Yes.’
Let us look into the manufacturing process of M-sand and ensure that there are no downsides/ safety hazards in using it for our buildings.
What is Manufactured Sand/M Sand/Robo Sand?
M sand is also called manufactured sand or Robo sand. It is manufactured by crushing hard stones, mainly granite or rocks, to fine particles in a factory or quarry. It is mixed with cement/bitumen and water to form a concrete or mortar mix. Different grades of M sand are manufactured based on their granule thickness. Additionally, they have varied applications and uses in the construction industry.
Composition of sand
In general, the sand consists of 0.063mm to 2.0 mm in diameter particles. The particles which are smaller in size are classified as silt. At the same time, the larger particles fall under the bracket of gravel or granules as per their size. The average density of sand is 1,538-1,842 kg per cubic meter. But, this may vary because of the trapped water content between the sand grains.
The physical and mineralogical properties of sand depend upon the originating rock. Different rocks, such as limestone, feldspar, granite, chlorite, quartz, gypsum, basalt, magnetite, etc., give different characteristics to the sand.
Quartz and feldspar are the most common raw materials used for manufacturing sand.
Pink Sand:
Sand made of quartz is either colorless or light pink. In comparison, the one made of feldspar is pink or amber in color. Quartz sands are high in silica content. Upon crushing, they produce particles that have sharp and angular edges. Quartz sands are used for making glass and sandpaper.
Black Sand:
Black sand is composed of volcanic activity and lava fragments from coral deposits. This sand is quite common in Hawaii. Magnetite and homblende also form sand that is black in color.
White sand:
It is the result of eroded limestone. It usually contacts coral fragments. The famous white sand on the Gulf of Mexico is made of limestone.
Light brown color sand:
The shell fragments present in the sand give them slight brownish coloration.
How M Sand is Manufactured?
Different types of crushers are used for crushing, screening, and classifying for manufacturing M-sand. The choice of crusher depends upon the rock used as raw material and the desired size, quality, and grade of the sand. Hammermill crusher, cone crusher, rod mill crusher, V.S.I.C, gyratory crusher, and roller crusher are common ones used by the manufacturers.
A typical M sand manufacturing process involves five stages.
Jaw crushing:
The first step involves feeding large boulders mined from the quarries into the jaw crushers. The moving jaw plates crush the large rocks into aggregates of variable sizes. It is only the fundamental size reduction process.
Cone crushing:
This step involves further crushing of the aggregates obtained in stage one. It results in the production of aggregates smaller than 100mm in size.
Vertical shaft impact crusher (VSIC):
VSIC are the most popular and widely used crushers in M sand making. They produce sand particles of even sizes and good quality. The crushed aggregates are fed into a vertical chamber. This chamber has the shafts rotating at a high r.p.m (revolutions per minute). The sand grains thus obtained are even in their sizes and shapes. The unique design and attrition action of VSI helps produce well-shaped fine particles. Moreover, these grains are cubical and angular with smooth surface texture.
Screening:
This process involves washing the particles to reduce the percentage of micro-fines. The micro-fines are reduced to less than 15% by weight. Washing also improves the workability of the manufactured sand by reducing its water-absorption rate by exposing it to wet and semi-wet conditions.
In the manufacturing plant, several screens with different hole diameter holes are fitted to separate particles as per their sizes. The incoming material is first made into a slurry by mixing with water. It is then filtered through large screens to obtain particles of different sizes.
Classification:
There are two types of classifiers – wet and dry. Dry classifiers are gaining traction due to their cost-effectiveness and higher value addition. Wet classifiers require water for treatment and a recrimination cast of sedimentation ponds. However, finding water for the plants is getting increasingly difficult. Air classifiers have overcome this limitation of dry classifiers. The air screens use draught of air for the classification of the particles. As a result, the larger particles fall first, and the successive particles keep falling further along with the chamber screens.
M sand’s artificial and mechanized manufacturing process gives reasonable control over the quality. The flow of materials, the vibration speed of the sorting screens, the flow of water for classification, everything is controlled through machines/computers. As a result, it produces the right size, shape, and proportion of the particles as desired. Moreover, manufactured sand is environment-friendly, economical, and readily available compared to river sand. It is suitable for usage in the building industry because of all of these qualities.
Conclusion
We tried our best to answer your question about How M sand is manufactured concisely and descriptively. If you have any other inquiries about construction supplies, please visit our website.
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