Sintered Materials and Blades
Sintered materials are a variety of substances that are used for hard surfaces in construction, architecture, and interior design. They come in a range of "flavors" and are called by a collection of proprietary names. One of the common traits of sintered materials is their hardness. No matter what variety of sintered material is being discussed, that material will reside on the hard end of the Mohs scale of mineral hardness. This means that no matter what variation of sintered material it is, there will be a specific blade to cut it. What kinds of sintered materials are there?
Sintered Stone Surfaces
Sintered stone requires diamond blades designed for cutting it. Materials that are "sintered" are produced by subjecting a collection of ingredients to intense heat and pressure so that they are transformed into a new mass of material. These resulting materials are normally very hard. The material that is produced by the sintering process is directly related to the ingredients used.
In the case of
sintered stone, particles of minerals that are commonly found in natural stone are the materials exposed to the sintering process. Thus, the result has been given the name sintered stone. The ingredients differ from one manufacturer to the next. And each brand is produced using a proprietary sintering process. Because of this, you will find multiple names for a given brand of sintered stone material. For example, Dekton refers to its slabs as Ultracompact surfaces. Similarly, there is another brand that uses the term pyrolithic stone. But no matter waht name sintered stone goes by it is very hard and takes special sintered stone blades.
Porcelain Ceramic Materials Are Sintered
Another type of sintered material for which specific diamond blades are made is one that may surprise some people. Ceramic
porcelain countertops have recently become an option in interior design projects. porcelain has been used for floor covering for many years. However, thicker pieces and larger sizes are now available and are made to form slabs which are then installed in kitchens as countertops.
Porcelain is a sintered material in that it too is produced using a sintering process. However, the ingredients used for producing porcelain slabs are different from those used for sintered stone. Since the ingredients affect the result, the final material is not the same as it is in the case of sintered stone mentioned above. Just know though, that both sintered stone and ceramic porcelain surfaces require diamond blade for cutting these very hard materials cleanly and efficiently.