Stone surface finishing by pulsed water jets

A Number of methods of stone surface treatment is currently used to improve the aesthetic appearance of the stone surface or to increase the roughness (improving its antislip properties). Traditional methods have various inherent disadvantages that may reduce the market interest for particular applications. In this paper, the results of a research aimed at evaluating the feasibility of using pulsating water jets for the rough finishing of stone surface are presented. Three different types of rocks (granite, basalt, and marble) were exposed to flat pulsating water jets during the tests. The features of rock surfaces created by the action of pulsed water jets were compared to those obtained with traditional methods, namely polishing, bush hammering and flaming. Results so far achieved indicate that the application of pulsed water jets in surface treatment can reduce (or even eliminate) some disadvantages of traditional techniques because it enables to obtain a surface with required roughness, while preserving aesthetic appearance of the stone.