Erosion resistance of sandstone material.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the utilization of pulsing water jet systems for sandstone erosion applications. Erosion process is investigated in terms of eroded depth and volume of sandstone using a pulsed water jet at a constant frequency of 20KHz, water pressure of 10MPa, 5MPa, and 2MPa were used to erode the surface, with optimal standoff distance of 20mm, 10mm, and 5mm, respectively with a traverse speed of 1-10mm/s. The disintegrated depth and volume of the eroded regions were measured using an optical microscope VHX-5100. The results show a relationship between pressure change and traverse speed, which influences erosion depth and volume loss. The findings indicate that with increase in the supply pressure and decrease in traverse speed, erosion depth and volume increase simultaneously. This study serves as à preliminary experiment for testing the erosive capability of pulsating water jet in eroding rocks at very low pressure such as 2 MPa.