Abrasive material forms a major component for surface preparation in coating applications. Since blastin
g method developed in 1890s, abrasive materials and its application methods also significantly improve
d to enhance blasting efficiency. In general, steel grit and shot ball are being used predominantly as me
tallic abrasives. Garnet and coal slag are used as non-metallic abrasives. Each abrasive is selected and
applied in accordance with the work location and substrate material of structures to be coated. In this st
udy, we have evaluated a new artificial non-metallic abrasive (ferrochrome slag) which is a by-product fr
om ferrochrome production process for stainless steel. This evaluation also included the checking of sur
face cleanliness performance and coating quality based on international test methods and field trials. Fo
r verifying the cleanliness quality, various tests were conducted as per international standards (ISO 850
1-8503). Sea water immersion test (ISO 2812-2) and cyclic test (ISO 12944-9) were carried out to check
coating performance after blasting. The field test results indicates that all inspection and quality criteria o
f surface preparation were met as per international standards. Furthermore, coating performance test re
sults also showed this abrasive does not have any adverse effect on coating properties.