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Polishing: the basic principles

V. FACCENDA, Consultant, Aosta, Italy
and
C.W.CORTI , World Gold Council, London

Introduction appear like a mountain landscape, as • Removal of surface material, e.g.

Polishing, whether done illustrated in Figure 1(a). The depth by abrasion (grinding, filing,
mechanically by hand on a polishing (and density) of the scratches can be buffing) or by electrolytic or
wheel or by machine or by measured and is expressed chemical polishing
electrochemical or chemical means, quantitatively in terms of surface
is not a ‘black art’ but a technology roughness. This can be measured • Flattening and smoothing of the
based on sound scientific principles. by several types of readily available surface by mechanical working
Understand those principles and you instruments, some based on sliding a (burnishing)
should improve your polishing diamond-tipped stylus across the In the abrasive removal of
efficiency, consistency and quality at surface to be measured material, the surface is contacted by
reduced costs. In this paper, we look (‘profileometer’). As a surface is hard abrasive media particles that
at the basic principles of the polished, it becomes smoother and move across the surface and plough
technology of mechanical polishing more reflective. The number and off material, leaving a series of
which is the most frequently used depth of the scratches decrease and scratches whose depth is determined
process and some of their the value of surface roughness by the abrasive particle size. The use
implications for industrial practice. It decreases. Thus, the process of of successively finer abrasives, one
applies to all materials and alloys just polishing can be measured in after the other, enables a smoother
as much as to gold jewellery. quantitative terms. surface, i.e a lower surface
This paper is based on sections of roughness, to be attained.
the new World Gold Council In burnishing, the surface is
publication, Handbook on Finishing Mechanisms and principles of smoothed by plastic deformation of
by Dr Valerio Faccenda (1), details of polishing the surface layer through a
which were published in the last There are 2 basic mechanisms by mechanical working treatment that
issue of Gold Technology, No 25, which a surface becomes smoother may involve hammering or frictional
April 1999. and polished. contact by a harder material such as

Reflectivity and surface

roughness
A perfectly flat, defect-free smooth
surface will reflect incident light
uniformly and efficiently and it will
(a) (d)
be highly reflective; we say that it has
a high lustre or is brightly polished. If
we examine the flat surface of an
unpolished piece of jewellery under
an eyepiece (loup) or, preferably,
under a microscope, we would see (b) (e)
that it was scratched, with scratch
lines criss-crossing at all angles. A
surface ground with emery paper
would be heavily scratched. It may
even feel rough to the touch by hand. (c) (f)
These surface imperfections cause
incident light to be reflected in
different directions and hence the Figure 1 – Evolution of surface roughness in electrochemical and mechanical finishing:
surface appears to be less reflective,
(a) - starting surface; (d) - mechanism of electrochemical polishing;
i.e. less lustrous or bright, and is less
well polished. (b) - mechanism of mechanical finishing (e) - result of electrochemical polishing;
In cross-section, at high (c) - result of mechanical finishing; (f) - surface after electrochemical polishing
magnification, the surface would and subsequent mechanical polishing

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steel or porcelain balls. This is often mechanism of electropolishing is not

the final step in the polishing process, discussed here but can be found in
following abrasive removal steps. the Handbook on Finishing,
The evolution of surface roughness published by World Gold Council.
in mechanical and electrochemical
polishing is shown schematically in Practical implications
Figure 1 (a-f). During polishing, the In the previous section, we noted a
surface roughness decreases with fundamental rule that for a given
time. However, there are a number of finishing medium and particular grain
points that are fundamental to the size, there is a minimum value of
mechanical polishing process, using surface roughness that can be
Figure 2 – Influence of treatment time on abrasive media, whether done by attained. When this value is reached,
the evolution of surface roughness for a
hand on a buffing wheel or by Figure 5, a continuation of the
given medium (schematic)
machine: process leads only to progressive loss
(1) For a given abrasive type and of material and fine surface detail and
particle (grain) size, there is a is thus wasted time. In machine
minimum surface roughness polishing, this means that jewellery
value that can be attained, items of varying size, shape and
irrespective of the length of time the surface condition should not be
jewellery continues to be processed, mixed together in the same batch, as
as shown schematically in Figure 2. each type probably requires different
Once this value has been reached, treatment times. There is the risk that,
further processing only brings about after a given treatment time, some
a progressive loss of fine surface objects have not reached the
detail as well as continued metal minimum surface roughness, while
removal. others are already in the wasteful
Figure 3 – Evolution of surface (2) The rate of metal removal phase of loss of detail and material.
roughness as a function of time for 3 depends on the abrasive medium
different finishing media (schematic) used. The more abrasive media with
a coarser particle (grain) size will cut
deeper and remove more metal than
a finer, less abrasive medium. Thus,
the coarser medium will remove
metal faster but the finer abrasive
medium will allow a lower minimum
surface roughness to be achieved.
This is illustrated schematically in
Figure 3.
(3) The time taken to achieve the
minimum surface roughness value,
for a given medium, will depend on
Figure 4 – Influence of the starting the initial surface roughness of the
condition of the surface on the time jewellery, as shown in Figure 4. A
required for finishing (schematic) rough surface (for example, as found
on a casting) will take longer to
process than a smoother surface (for
example, as found on a stamping).
Thus, it should be apparent that the
better the surface condition obtained
in the earlier manufacturing stages,
the less time and effort is needed to
obtain the desired level of polish.
It should be obvious, too, that
polishing will only occur in those
regions of the jewellery piece
accessed by the polishing medium.
Figure 5 – “Useful treatment time” and Large media will not access small or
“Wasted treatment time” during polishing deep recesses, for example. Hence
size and shape of the media are also
important. Some of the practical
implications of these basic points are
discussed in the next section. The

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As seen in Figure 3, coarser media In some equipment, the results plastic deformation of the surface,
cut faster but finer media allow lower obtained by use of certain finishing thus polishing the jewellery items
surface roughness values to be media can be improved through the and giving them the required sheen.
attained. Use of a fine medium alone addition of suitable chemical In mechanised finishing, media
to achieve the required polish, i.e. a solutions: these can be degreasing, should have a number of attributes:
low value of surface roughness, takes detergent, acid or specialized for • They should be able to access all
a significant time. However, the total particular uses. regions of the jewellery surface to
time required for a good finish (low Independent of the equipment and be polished. Thus, size and shape
surface roughness) to be attained can of the finishing medium, the time to are important.
be significantly reduced through a achieve the minimum roughness is • They should present fresh cutting
multi-step process whereby a series also influenced by the initial surfaces to the jewellery, so some
of media are used in succession, each condition of the surface, as noted wear is necessary.
one being finer than the one before. earlier, Figure 4. The operator is a • They should be wear resistant, to
This takes advantage of the faster further important variable, frequently avoid frequent replacement.
cutting of the coarser media, with the overlooked: the apparatus, the • They should not cause any
change to the finer media being finishing medium, the object to be sedimentation in the machine,
made when the minimum roughness finished do not take decisions, the whereby jewellery and media
value of that medium has been operator does! separate into layers, reducing
attained. In Figure 6, three abrasive During the testing and optimisation polishing efficiency.
media are used in succession, with phase of the finishing process for a • At the end of the finishing step, the
their respective minimum roughness particular type of jewellery, it is media should be easily separable
values being reached at points A, B always necessary to carry out a from the jewellery. The media
and C. careful set of tests to find the should not lodge or jam in the
optimum process conditions for the jewellery.
actual objects to be finished: different Abrasive media control the surface
finishing media, quantity ratios roughness of the jewellery through
(jewellery:media), times and added the abrasive particle (grain) size and
solutions should be tested. When the the relative amount of active material.
most favourable operating conditions The process is influenced by the ratio
have been found, they should be between size of the finishing medium
accurately maintained for each batch and the size of the pieces to be
processed. If something goes wrong, finished as well as their shapes and
a critical scrutiny of the process their relative specific gravities. The
variables is necessary, including the wider the contact between the
operator. He may have made an finishing medium and the surfaces
error. and edges of the pieces to be
finished, the better the results.
Influence of Equipment type A range of finishing media, with
The equipment used in mechanised different cutting capability and with
finishing also plays a significant role different gauge sizes, are
in the time taken to achieve the commercially available. The abrasive
minimum surface roughness for a media can be designed for fast,
given media. This is a reflection of medium or slow cutting rate. As
the useful energy – force and motion discussed earlier, the smaller particle
– imparted to the jewellery and size media provide a better finishing
media. In general, for a given (lower surface roughness) than larger
abrasive media, the rotary barrel particle size media; however, the
(tumbler) will take longer than a latter cut faster.
vibratory barrel, with the centrifugal
disc and centrifugal planetary barrel
taking the shortest times (see graph,
for example, in references 1 and 2).
However, the selection of machine is
not made solely on processing time
but on other factors such as the
incidence of surface damage (‘nicks’)
caused by impingement, cost, etc.
Figure 6 – Schematic representation of a
multistep finishing process, where finer Media
media are used in succession (points A The task of the finishing medium is to
and B denote the change to a finer control and reduce surface roughness
medium) through either abrasive action or by

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The ratio between the amount of Conclusions

finishing media and the amount of The basic principles of mechanical
jewellery pieces to be finished polishing have been outlined and
deserves special attention. Whilst demonstrate that finishing of
each supplier gives his own jewellery is a technology, not a ‘black
particular advice, experience shows art’. The principles apply equally to
that the preferred ratio by volume polishing by hand on a wheel, as
between finishing media and pieces practiced in many workshops
to be: worldwide or to polishing by
• Ceramic abrasives 4:1 machine in an advanced factory.
• Plastics (containing abrasives) 7:1 Understanding these principles and
• Non-abrasive ceramics their implications should enable a
(e.g. small porcelain spheres) 10:1 jewellery producer to attain an
• Small steel spheres 8:1 improved, more consistent quality of
These ratios serve as a good ‘rule of finishing with less gold loss and at
thumb’. In all cases, the ratios lower production costs.
between finishing medium and
pieces to be finished should be References
optimised for each particular 1 “Handbook on Finishing”,
production and, as a rule of thumb, V.Faccenda, published by
the volume of the pieces to be World Gold Council, London,
finished should always be no more 1999.*
than 25-30% of the total volume. 2 See graph by D.Goodrich,
Otherwise the probability of reported by M.Grimwade, Gold
impingement between the jewellery Technology, no.15, April 1995,
pieces being finished increases, page 20
increasing the risk of damage such as
the formation of ‘nicks’. * see page 34 for details of purchasing
this Handbook.

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