Product Uses

BLACK BEAUTY® abrasives are used in a broad range of industries and applications to remove surface coatings and contaminants such as rust, paint and scale from structures and equipment. These structures include bridges, ships, water tanks, offshore drilling rigs, oil field equipment, marine equipment, railcars, and steel machinery to name a few.

BLACK BEAUTY® premium quality roofing granules are a critical raw material used in the production of asphalt roofing shingles. Reed Minerals premium quality roofing granules include Headlap Granules, Mineral Surfacing Products, Backsurfacing Granules and GRANDURA® Ceramic Coated Color Granules. All Reed Minerals roofing products are sourced from an environmentally sound, recycled coal combustion by-product.

Reed Minerals is finding a host of new and emerging uses for BLACK BEAUTY® aggregates. These uses include as a superior alternative media for materials such as silica sand and other aggregates that are compromised by environmental or health issues. Additional uses include as a mineral filter media, a sealcoat aggregate, non-skid applications, or for enhancing decorative pre-cast concrete products, bottom media for aquariums, ash tray media, and golf course bunkers/sand traps.

Heavy Industrial/ Petrochemical

Harsh weather conditions, high humidity, and windblown salt air take a heavy toll on heavy industrial infrastructure. Fast cutting BLACK BEAUTY® blasting abrasives are ideal for removing rust, paint and scale, and thick coatings on the inside of petrochemical storage tanks that require an “extra rough” profile.
 

Marine and Ship Building

Marine and ship building yards continually maintain and repair vessels of all sizes and shapes. Air blasting with BLACK BEAUTY® abrasives is the first step in aggressive surface preparation to removing scale, rust and old paint from ship hulls, bottoms and other steel surfaces.

 

Railcars

Railcar repair yards recycle BLACK BEAUTY® abrasives on site, mixing them to create a working mix Elite grade to remove paint and rust from railcar ladders, safety gates and the steel cars themselves as part of the surface preparation process. For auto rack railcars, yards insist on BLACK BEAUTY® coal slag abrasives over steel grit abrasives to protect new cars from rust-spot damage caused by steel tailing residue falling on the cars.
 

Residential and Commercial Roofing

Leading asphalt shingle manufacturers nationwide utilize Reed Minerals high quality BLACK BEAUTY® roofing granules for headlap, mineral surfacing, backsurfacing and coated color applications (GRANDURA®).

 

Bridges and Highway Infrastructure

Cost effective and environmentally friendly, BLACK BEAUTY® abrasives blast away peeling paint and corroded steel on bridges and highway infrastructure. BLACK BEAUTY® abrasives are also low dusting, low free silica and chemically inert.

 

Warehouses

BLACK BEAUTY® aggregate may be mixed with epoxy systems for non-skid flooring applications in warehouse construction and other places where there is heavy foot traffic.

 

Wastewater Treatment

Environmentally sound, chemically inert and virtually non-leachable, BLACK BEAUTY® aggregate is an ideal filter medium in wastewater treatment plants.

 

Municipal Water Storage Tanks and Treatment Plants

BLACK BEAUTY® blasting abrasives provide controlled distribution and leave water storage tank interior and exterior surfaces clean with no corrosive deposits preparing them for repainting or resurfacing.