Emery

emery: see corundum.

---

emery

Granular rock consisting of a mixture of the mineral corundum (aluminum oxide, Al₂O₃) and iron oxides such as magnetite (Fe₃O₄) or hematite (Fe₂O₃). It is a dark, dense substance that looks much like iron ore. Turkey is the world's major producer. Long used as an abrasive or polishing material, particularly in sandpapers, it has largely been replaced by synthetic materials such as alumina. Its largest application now is as a nonskid material in floors, stair treads, and pavements.

---

emery

a. a hard greyish-black mineral consisting of corundum with either magnetite or haematite: used as an abrasive and polishing agent, esp as a coating on paper, cloth, etc. Formula: Al₂O₃

b. (as modifier): emery paper

---

emery [′em·ə·rē]

(materials)

An abrasive which is composed of pulverized, impure corundum; used in polishing and grinding.

(mineralogy)

A fine, granular, gray-black, impure variety of corundum containing iron oxides, either hematite or magnetite; occurs as masses in limestone and as segregations in igneous rock.

---

emery

A granular form of impure carborundum; used for grinding and polishing glass, stone, and metal surfaces.

---

Emery 

fine-grained rock in which the corundum is closely interlocked with such minerals as magnetite, sulfides, and brittle mica. Containing up to 60 percent corundum, emery is one of the natural abrasive materials. Emery has a hardness of 7–8 on the mineralogical scale. It is found chiefly in marble in the form of lenses, stocks, nests, and veins. Less frequently emery occurs in the form of xenolith in gabbro, norite, and granite or at the contact between these rocks and enclosing rock.