Beads are round and smooth, strong and durable, exhibiting low dusting characteristics and potential breakage. The spherical shape results in only compressive forces, while pellets (extrusions) undergo compression as well as tension, making breakage more likely. The ends of the pellets also have angled edges, making them subject to chipping and breakage. In addition, beads naturally dense load for optimum loading density without the use of dense phase loading equipment.