I. Introduction
As an important product in the field of superhard materials, polycrystalline diamond crusher plays a key role in many industrial processing applications. This research report aims to deeply analyze the characteristics, production process, application status, market structure and future development trend of polycrystalline diamond crusher,
and provide comprehensive and valuable information reference for relevant industry practitioners, investors and researchers.
II. Overview of Polycrystalline Diamond Crusher
Definition and Structure
Polycrystalline diamond crusher is a polycrystalline aggregate sintered by many tiny diamond crystals under high temperature and high pressure (HPHT) or other synthetic process conditions with the help of metal catalysts or binders, and then crushed to obtain granular materials with a certain particle size distribution.
The diamond crystals inside are arranged in disorder and closely combined with each other to form a unique microstructure, which gives it excellent comprehensive performance.
Features
Ultra-high hardness: Mohs hardness is as high as 10, Vickers hardness can reach 80-120GPa, making it easy to perform processing operations such as cutting, grinding and polishing on various hard materials. For example, when processing carbide tools,
polycrystalline diamond crushing materials can significantly improve processing efficiency and tool surface quality.
Excellent wear resistance: During long-term processing, the wear is extremely small, and stable cutting performance can be maintained, which greatly extends the service life of the tool. This feature is particularly important in the stone processing industry,
which can reduce the replacement frequency of tools such as saw blades and grinding discs, and reduce production costs.
Good thermal conductivity: The high thermal conductivity is conducive to timely dissipation of cutting heat during processing, avoiding damage to workpieces and tools due to local overheating, thereby ensuring processing accuracy and surface quality.
Chemical stability: At room temperature, it has strong corrosion resistance to most chemical reagents such as acids and alkalis, and can adapt to a variety of complex processing environments.
3. Production process
Raw material selection and pretreatment
Diamond powder: Diamond powder with uniform particle size and high purity is selected as the main raw material. The quality of diamond powder directly affects the performance of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, so strict testing and screening are required before purchasing and use.
Metal catalyst or binder: Common metal catalysts include cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), etc., and binders include compounds of elements such as silicon (Si) and boron
(B). The amount and type of these substances added need to be precisely controlled according to the specific production process and product requirements to ensure the effective bonding of diamond crystals during the sintering process.
Pretreatment: Mixing, ball milling and other pretreatment operations are performed on diamond micropowder and metal catalyst/binder to make the raw materials fully and evenly mixed to improve the reaction uniformity during the sintering process.
Synthesis process
High temperature and high pressure method (HPHT): The mixed raw materials are loaded into a special graphite mold and placed in a high-pressure equipment such as a six-sided top press or a two-sided top press. Under high temperature (1300-1500°C) and high pressure (5-6GPa),
the diamond micropowder is kept for a certain time (several minutes to tens of minutes) under the action of the metal catalyst to form a polycrystalline diamond block.
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD): Using carbon-containing gas (such as methane, acetylene, etc.) as the carbon source, in a high temperature (800-1000°C) and low pressure (tens to hundreds of Pa) reaction environment,
the carbon-containing gas is decomposed and deposited on the substrate to grow diamond crystals through plasma enhancement or hot wire excitation, and then polycrystalline diamond materials are obtained through subsequent treatment. However,
the polycrystalline diamond crushed material produced by the CVD method is slightly inferior to the HPHT method products in hardness and wear resistance, and its current application range is relatively narrow.
Crushing and grading
Crushing: Mechanical crushing equipment such as jaw crusher, cone crusher, ball mill, etc. are used to crush the synthesized polycrystalline diamond block into particles of the required size.
The crushing force and time need to be controlled during the crushing process to ensure the uniformity of the particle size and regularity of the shape of the crushed material.
Classification: Use vibration screen, airflow classifier and other equipment to classify and screen the crushed particles. According to different particle size ranges, the polycrystalline diamond crushed materials are divided into multiple grades, such as 10-20 mesh, 20-30 mesh, 30-40 mesh, etc.,
to meet the needs of different application fields.
IV. Application Fields
Stone Processing
Cutting: Polycrystalline diamond crushed materials are widely used in the manufacture of cutting saw blades for natural stones such as marble and granite. During the cutting process, its high hardness and wear resistance can cut the stone quickly and efficiently, and the cutting surface is flat and smooth,
reducing the workload of the subsequent grinding process. According to statistics, the efficiency of cutting stone using polycrystalline diamond crushed material saw blades can be increased by 30%-50% compared with traditional saw blades.
Grinding and Polishing: Used in the manufacture of stone grinding and polishing tools, it can effectively remove scratches and flaws on the stone surface and improve the gloss and decorative effect of the stone.
For example, in large stone processing plants, grinding discs made of polycrystalline diamond crushed material can reduce the surface roughness of stone from Ra 10μm to less than Ra 0.5μm.
Geological Drilling
Oil Drilling: In the process of oil exploration and mining, polycrystalline diamond crushed material is used to manufacture the cutting teeth of drill bits. It can adapt to various complex formation conditions, efficiently crush rocks, and increase drilling speed and drill bit service life. Compared with traditional carbide drill bits,
the drilling efficiency of polycrystalline diamond drill bits can be increased by 2-3 times, and the frequency of drill bit replacement is significantly reduced.
Geological Exploration: In drilling operations in geological exploration, mining and other fields, polycrystalline diamond crushed material drill bits also play an important role, which can help obtain more accurate geological samples and mineral resource information.
Machining
Metal Cutting: It can be used to manufacture cutting tools, such as turning tools, milling cutters, drill bits, etc., and perform precision processing on difficult-to-process metal materials such as carbide, hardened steel, and titanium alloys.
When processing titanium alloy parts, the cutting speed of polycrystalline diamond tools can be increased by 5-10 times compared with carbide tools, and the processing surface quality is better.
Grinding tool manufacturing: various grinding tools, such as grinding wheels, abrasive belts, etc., are made for grinding metal parts, which can achieve high-precision and high-efficiency grinding and improve the dimensional accuracy and surface roughness requirements of parts.
V. Market analysis
Market size
In recent years, with the continuous development of the global manufacturing industry and the growing demand for high-end processing tools, the market size of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials has shown a steady upward trend. According to market research institutions,
the global polycrystalline diamond crushing material market size has increased from approximately US$800 million in 2015 to approximately US$1.2 billion in 2020, and is expected to reach approximately US$1.8 billion by 2025, with an annual compound growth rate of approximately 8%-10%.
Market distribution
Geographical distribution: At present, the main production and consumption areas of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials in the world are concentrated in Asia, Europe and North America. Due to the rapid development of manufacturing industries in China, India and other countries,
Asia has a strong demand for polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, becoming the world's largest market, accounting for about 40% - 45%; Europe and North America, with their advanced manufacturing technology and high-end equipment manufacturing needs, have market shares of about 25% - 30% and 20% - 25% respectively.
Application field distribution: From the perspective of application fields, the stone processing industry is the largest application field of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, accounting for about 40% - 45% of the market share; followed by geological drilling and mechanical processing,
accounting for 25% - 30% and 20% - 25% of the market share respectively.
Competitive landscape
Major companies: The global polycrystalline diamond crushing material market is highly competitive, and major companies include Element Six in the United States, Sumitomo Electric in Japan, Iljin Materials in South Korea, and Huanghe Whirlwind and Zhongnan Diamond in China.
These companies have their own advantages in technology research and development, production scale and product quality.
Competitive situation: European, American and Japanese companies take the lead in the research and development and production of high-end polycrystalline diamond crushing materials. Their products are mainly used in high-end equipment manufacturing fields such as aerospace and automobile manufacturing,
and their products have high added value; Chinese companies have strong competitiveness in the mid- and low-end markets. Through continuous technological innovation and cost control, they gradually expand into the high-end market, and their market share increases year by year;
Korean companies have certain competitive advantages in certain specific application fields and product specifications.
VI. Development Trends
Technological Innovation
Research and Development of New Synthesis Processes: Continuously explore and improve the synthesis process of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, such as developing new high-temperature and high-pressure equipment and optimizing process parameters to improve product quality and consistency;
research new chemical vapor deposition technology to reduce production costs and improve the performance of CVD polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, so that they can be used in more fields.
Microstructure Regulation: In-depth study of the relationship between the microstructure and performance of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials, by adding special additives or using special treatment processes, to achieve precise regulation of its microstructure, and further improve the product's hardness,
wear resistance and toughness and other performance indicators.
Application expansion
Exploration of applications in emerging fields: With the continuous advancement of science and technology, polycrystalline diamond crushing materials are expected to be used in emerging fields, such as silicon wafer cutting and grinding in semiconductor chip manufacturing,
ceramic material processing in 5G communication equipment manufacturing, and parts processing in new energy vehicle manufacturing. These emerging fields have extremely high requirements for processing accuracy and efficiency,
and the excellent performance of polycrystalline diamond crushing materials will provide them with effective solutions.
Development of composite superhard materials: Polycrystalline diamond is compounded with other materials (such as cemented carbide, ceramics, etc.) to develop composite superhard materials with better performance to meet the special needs of different application scenarios.
For example, when processing high-hardness materials, polycrystalline diamond-cemented carbide composite tools have both the high hardness and wear resistance of polycrystalline diamond and the good toughness and machinability of cemented carbide.
Market integration and cooperation
Enterprise mergers and acquisitions and cooperation: With the intensification of market competition, more corporate mergers and acquisitions and cooperation are expected to occur in the future.
Large enterprises can achieve resource sharing and technical complementarity by acquiring small enterprises or conducting strategic cooperation with other enterprises, further expand production scale, improve market competitiveness, and promote industry integration and development.
Collaborative development of the industrial chain: Strengthen the collaborative cooperation between upstream and downstream enterprises in the polycrystalline diamond crushing material industry chain, from raw material supply, production and manufacturing to product application,
to form a complete industrial chain ecosystem, jointly promote industry technological innovation and market expansion, and improve the added value and profitability of the entire industrial chain.
VII. Conclusion
As an important superhard material, polycrystalline diamond crushing material has excellent performance and a wide range of applications. With the continuous innovation of production technology,
the continuous expansion of application fields and the promotion of market competition, the polycrystalline diamond crushing material industry will usher in more development opportunities and challenges. Relevant enterprises should increase investment in technology research and development,
improve product quality and performance, actively expand emerging markets, and strengthen industrial chain cooperation to remain invincible in the fierce market competition and promote the sustainable and healthy development of the polycrystalline diamond crushing material industry.
