The difference between crushing and grinding

The process of turning large-particle materials into small-particle materials by external force is called crushing, and the machinery used is called a crusher. The process of turning small particle materials into powder materials by external force is called grinding or milling, and the machinery used is called grinding machinery. The combination of crushing and grinding is referred to as smashing or grinding, and the machine used is referred to as pulverizing machine or grinding machine.

The purpose of material crushing (grinding)

1. Increase the specific surface area of the material
   After the material is broken, its specific surface area increases, which can increase the effect of physical action and the speed of chemical reaction. For example, the mixing of several different solid materials, if the object is finely broken, the higher the degree of uniform mixing; the firing of cement clinker is basically a solid phase reaction, and the reaction speed is related to the particle size of the material. The finer the material is ground, the faster the reaction speed will proceed. The faster the reaction rate, the more heat can be saved during calcination.
2. Preparation of concrete aggregate and artificial sand
   The preparation of concrete requires aggregates (crushed stones) of various sizes, which are crushed stones of various sizes obtained by crushing and sieving large blocks of rock. When the natural sand is insufficient, the crushing method can be used to prepare artificial sand.
3. Decompose useful components in the ore
   In the beneficiation operation, the crushing and grinding operation is to separate the useful components and impurities that are closely combined and symbiotic in various useful minerals, that is, “dissociation”. After the materials are dissociated, the impurities can be removed by the method of beneficiation and a pure concentrate can be obtained.
4. Prepare for the next step of adding the raw materials or facilitate the application
   In coking plants, sintering plants, agglomeration plants, building materials and powder metallurgy departments, the raw materials used are generally relatively large in size, and they are required to be crushed to below a certain particle size for further processing.

In the industrial sectors such as food, chemical medicine, fertilizers and pesticides, products are often ground into powder for use.