BACKGROUND

To determine the response of a glass or glass-ceramic material to flaws, an abrasion procedure may be used to introduce flaws into the material, followed by mechanical testing of the abraded material. Standard abrasion procedures for glass materials are described in Section A2 of ASTM C158-02 (ASTM Standard C158-02 (2007), “Standard Test Methods for Strength of Glass by Flexure-Determination of Modulus of Rupture, ASTM International,” ASTM International, West Conshohocken, Pa., 2007, DOI: 10.1520/C0158-02R07).

SUMMARY

An abrading device that can be used for selective abrasion of specimens, such as glass and glass-ceramic specimens, in preparation for subsequent mechanical testing is disclosed. In one illustrative embodiment, the abrading device includes a funnel. An orifice structure providing an outlet orifice is disposed within the funnel. A position or length of the orifice structure is adjustable within the funnel such that an offset distance of the outlet orifice from a bottom end of the funnel is adjustable. The abrading device further includes a vacuum line connected to the funnel to remove spent abrasion material from the funnel, where the vacuum line has an adjustable vacuum pressure. An illustrative companion method of abrading a specimen includes positioning a specimen at a select distance below the bottom end of the funnel. The method further includes adjusting the offset distance of the outlet orifice from the bottom end of the funnel to set an abrasion distance between the outlet orifice and the specimen to a select value. The method further includes establishing a flow of gas through the funnel and orifice structure. The method further includes dumping an abrasive material into the funnel, where the abrasive material passes through the orifice structure and outlet orifice to strike a select area of the specimen. The method further includes removing spent abrasive material from the funnel through the vacuum line.

