This joint standard covers the use of blast cleaning abrasives to achieve a defined degree of cleaning of steel surfaces prior to the application of a protective coating or lining system. This standard is intended for use by coating or lining specifiers, applicators, inspectors, or others whose responsibility it may be to define a standard degree of surface cleanliness.

The focus of this standard is industrial blast cleaning. White metal blast cleaning, near-white blast cleaning, commercial blast cleaning, and brush-off blast cleaning are addressed in separate standards.

Industrial blast cleaning provides a greater degree of cleaning than brush-off blast cleaning (SSPC-SP 7/NACE No. 4), but less than commercial blast cleaning (SSPC-SP 6/NACE No. 3).

Industrial blast cleaning is used when the objective is to remove most of the coating, mill scale, and rust, but when the extra effort required to remove every trace of these is determined to be unwarranted.

The difference between an industrial blast and a brush-off blast is that the objective of a brush-off blast is to allow as much of an existing coating to remain as possible, while the purpose of the industrial blast is to remove most of the coating.

A commercial blast is free of mill scale, rust, and coatings, and allows only random staining on less than 33% of the surface. The industrial blast allows defined mill scale, coating, and rust to remain on less than 10% of the surface and allows defined stains to remain on all surfaces.

This joint standard was prepared by the SSPC/NACE Task Group A on Surface Preparation by Abrasive Blast Cleaning. This joint Task Group includes members of both the SSPC Surface Preparation Committee and the NACE Unit Committee T-6G on Surface Preparation.