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Tips, Tricks & Techniques:
For best performance of your mounting press and media:
■ Do not compression mount soft, low melting point alloys, wood,
plastic or very friable materials. Castable mounting media will
provide better results.
■ Apply Release Agent 20-8185-002 to mold for easy removal.
■ To permanently label specimens when using opaque mount
media, fill most of the mold cylinder with mount media before
adding a thin layer of TransOptic media. Place a typed label
over the TransOptic powder, then cover it with a second layer of
TransOptic powder. When cured, this preserves the label in a
clear layer of media for easy sample identification.
■ To eliminate ”cotton balls” in TransOptic mounts, increase cool
time and/or reduce molding temperature for improved mount
clarity.
■ Reheating TransOptic mounts to 110 °C for 15 – 30 minutes will
allow for the removal of the sample. Wearing heat-resistant
gloves, apply pressure to the media near the sample with
pliers. This should flex the mount, allowing the media to break
away from the sample with increasing pressure.
■ Mounting samples off-center for EBSD evaluation facilitates
beam positioning.
Compression Mounting Compounds
Troubleshooting:
■ Mount media that appears frosted or unfused from the
mounting press is often a sign of insufficient molding
temperatures. Check to ensure the temperature setting on
the mounting press is 150 °C or higher and that the heating
element is tightened on the mold cylinder. For the SimpliMet®
1000 and 3000 Mounting Presses, this is done by turning
the cylinder locking screw counter-clockwise until the screw
is loose.
■ Uncured mounts can be caused by too much moisture in
the media. Ensure that containers are properly closed
between uses.
■ Ensure that enough mounting media is placed into mold to
sufficiently cover the sample. If not enough mount media is
used, the mounting media may not be compressed enough to
cure properly and could cause damage to the mold cylinders
and ram assembly.
■ Radial splitting of cured mounts is often caused by samples
with sharp corners or those that are too large for the mold size.
Reducing sample size and/or grinding off sharp corners is
recommended.
■ Excessive shrinkage is related to the thermal expansion
coefficient of the media and can be minimized by fully cooling
specimens under pressure in the mounting press. To minimize
shrinkage, the specimen should be cooled to room
temperature before removal from the mounting press.
Looking to Control the Mounting Pressures of Everyday Sample Preparation?
Let Buehler help. Our SimpliMet® Family of Mounting Presses offer:
• Easy-to-use hot compression mounting equipment
• Manual or semi-automatic operation
• Simple analog controls or membrane keypads with LCD display
• Interchangeable 1”- 2” (25mm - 50mm) mold sizes
• Duplex spacer allows two mounts in a single cycle
• Quick and safe bayonet mold closure system
• Automatic programmability available
Buehler also offers a complete line of sample preparation equipment.
From abrasive cutters to precision saws to grinder-polishers, Buehler has
it all!
For more information, contact your local Buehler Sales Engineer or visit
our website at www.buehler.com/productinfo/presses.htm
We are Buehler - the science behind materials preparation and
analysis!
12 Effective 2011