TEMPERATURE DISTRIBUTION DURING ELECTRO-DISCHARGE ABRASIVE GRINDING

The objective of this work is to develop a finite element method (FEM) based mathematical model to simulate the hybrid machining process of grinding and electric discharge machining (EDM), named as Electro-discharge abrasive grinding (EDAG), for temperature distribution in the workpiece. Two different finite element codes have been developed to calculate the temperature distribution due to grinding heat source and EDM heat source separately. The transient temperature field within workpiece due to cut-off grinding is determined due to moving rectangular heat source. Gaussian heat distribution of power within a spark has been considered in the calculation of temperature distribution due to EDM. Temperature distribution in the workpiece due to combined process is obtained by using superposition. The simulation shows a sudden rise in temperature at the spark location. The predicted results can be used for calculation of thermal stresses, which play a major role as far as high-quality product requirements are concerned.     

Numerical and experimental studies on the temperature field in precision grinding of SiCp/Al composites

During precision machining of SiCp/Al composites, the temperature of the workpiece surface directly affects the machining quality. In this paper, a triangle heat source model was used to calculate the heat flow during grinding of SiCp/Al composites, then, a three-dimensional finite element method was employed to investigate the temperature distribution at different process parameters, i.e., grinding depth and feed speed of the worktable. In addition, the temperature measures using embedded thermocouple were applied to compare with predictions from the thermal model. The results indicate that the grinding temperature predicted by the finite element method agrees well with the experiment data, and the triangle heat source model was suitable for estimating the workpiece temperature of precision grinding.     

Residual stresses due to a moving heat source

An analytical model based on finite element method is presented for determination of the residual stresses of thermal and mechanical origin due to surface grinding process. The temperature field within the workpiece is determined as the quasi-steady state temperature distribution due to the moving heat source. An iterative procedure is employed for evaluation of the step-by-step movement of the temperature field and the force, in order to simulate the movement of the grinding wheel over the workpiece. Computation of the elastic-plastic stress history culminates in the residual stress state of the workpiece. Influence of the magnitude of mechanical force, the rate of heat input and the speed of movement of workpiece on the residual stress distribution, are discussed.     

钛合金小孔电火花加工有限元仿真研究

为有效地预测钛合金材料电火花小孔加工的体积去除率,利用有限元法建立了单脉冲电火花加工钛合金小孔的数学模型。模型考虑了诸多因素：高斯热源模型、能量分配率、随放电时间变化的放电半径以及熔融潜热。应用生死单元法模拟出去除体积形貌图,然后计算出单脉冲去除体积。采用K1C高速小孔机加工钛合金小孔,记录加工时间,利用称重法得出加工前后重量,从而算出单脉冲体积去除率。验证实验得出,实际加工单脉冲体积去除率和模拟结果的误差小于10%,结果表明,仿真模型可较准确地预测体积去除率,为指导电火花加工钛合金小孔提供了依据。     

Experimental and finite element analysis of EDM process and investigation of material removal rate by response surface methodology

In this study, thermal modeling and finite element simulation of electrical discharge machining (EDM) has been done, taking into account several important aspects such as temperature-dependent material properties, shape and size of the heated zone (Gaussian heat distribution), energy distribution factor, plasma flushing efficiency, and phase change to predict thermal behavior and material removal mechanism in EDM process. Temperature distribution on the cathode has been calculated using ANSYS finite element code, and the effect of EDM parameters on heat distribution along the radius and depth of the workpiece has been obtained. Temperature profiles have been used to calculate theoretical material removal rate (MRR) from the cathode. Theoretically calculated MRRs are compared with the experimental results, making it possible to precisely determine the portion of energy that enters the cathode for AISI H13 tool steel. Also in this paper, the effect of EDM parameters on MRR has been investigated by using the technique of design of experiments and response surface methodology. Finally, a quadratic polynomial regression model has been proposed for MRR, and the accuracy of this model has been checked by means of analysis of residuals.     

Finite element prediction of material removal rate due to traveling wire electrochemical spark machining

Manufacturing engineers are facing new challenges during machining of electrically nonconducting or partially conducting materials such as glass, quartz, ceramics, and composites. Traveling wire electrochemical spark machining (TW-ECSM), a largely unknown technology, has been applied successfully for cutting these types of materials. However, hardly any theoretical work has been reported related to machining performance of TW-ECSM process. The present work is an attempt in this direction. In the present work, a 3-D finite element transient thermal model has been developed to estimate the temperature field and material removal rate (MRR) due to Gaussian distributed input heat flux of a spark during TW-ECSM. First, the developed code calculates the temperature field in the workpiece and then MRR is calculated using this temperature field. The calculated MRR has been compared with the experimental MRR for verifying the approach. Computational experiments have been performed for the determination of energy partition and spark radius of a single spark. The effects of various process parameters such as energy partition, duty factor, spark radius, and ejection efficiency on MRR have been reported. It has been found that MRR increases with increase in energy partition, duty factor, and ejection efficiency but decreases with increase in spark radius.     

Development of parallel spark electrical discharge machining

This paper describes the development of parallel spark EDM method. In the discharge circuit, the electrode is divided into multiple electrodes, each of which is electrically insulated and connected to the pulse generator through a diode. A capacitor is inserted parallel to each discharge gap between each electrode and workpiece (here workpiece is common for each electrode). Compared with conventional EDM in which only a singular discharge can be generated for each pulse, multiple discharges can dispersively be generated for each pulse in parallel spark EDM. Results of experiments on parallel spark EDM and conventional EDM show that not only is the machining process more stable, but the machining speed and surface roughness can also be improved with parallel spark EDM.     

Theoretical Analysis of Thermal Stresses in Electro-discharge Diamond Grinding

Excessive heat generated at the machining zone, during Electro-discharge diamond grinding (EDDG), is the major cause of thermal stresses, untempered martensite, overtempered martensite, and cracks. Therefore, the key to achieve good surface integrity in a machined part is to prevent excessive temperature and thermal stresses generated during machining process. A finite element model has been developed to estimate thermal stresses during EDDG when the current is switched-off. First, the developed code calculates the temperature in the workpiece and then the thermal stress field is estimated using this temperature field. Computations were carried out in plane strain condition for different down feeds of the grinding wheel. The effects of time of grinding and feed on thermal stress distribution have been reported. The thermal stresses are found to be higher near top surface at initial time of grinding but shifted away towards bottom after some grinding time.     

Diamond face grinding of WC-Co composite with spark assistance: Experimental study and parameter optimization

Electro-discharge machining (EDM) characteristics of tungsten carbide-cobalt composite are accompanied by a number of problems such as the presence of resolidified layer, large tool wear rate and thermal cracks. Use of combination of conventional grinding and EDM (a new hybrid feature) has potential to overcome these problems. This article presents the face grinding of tungsten carbide-cobalt composite (WC-Co) with electrical spark discharge incorporated within face of wheel and flat surface of cylindrical workpiece. A face grinding setup for electro- discharge diamond grinding (EDDG) process is developed. The effect of input parameters such as wheel speed, current, pulse on-time and duty factor on output parameters such as material removal rate (MRR), wheel wear rate (WWR) and average surface roughness (ASR), are investigated. The present study shows that MRR increases with increase in current and wheel speed while it decreases with increase in pulse on-time for higher pulse on-time (above 100 μs). The most significant factor has been found as wheel speed affecting the robustness of electro- discharge diamond face grinding (EDDFG) process.     

ANALYSIS OF SPARK PROFILES DURING EDM PROCESS

Abstract

A fundamental study of electro discharge machining (EDM) based on the physics of an arc and heat transfer theory has been carried out. The field equations for electric potential and temperature in the spark region are simultaneously solved by employing the finite element method. Using the criterion of constant current at any cross section of a spark, the arc radii at different cross sections are corrected until convergence. The final spark shape obtained is noncylindrical, and has different radii at different cross sections. Also, the percent of heat input absorbed by cathode, anode, and dielectric has been calculated. The computed relative electrode wear has been compared with experimental results.     

Investigation on the effect of EDM process variables and environments on acoustic emission signals

Abstract

The performance of electrical discharge machining (EDM) primarily depends on the spark quality generated in the inter-electrode gap (IEG) between the tool and workpiece. A method for obtaining accurate information about the spark gap is required to effectively monitor the EDM process. The rise and fall of thermal energy in the discharge zone at a rapid rate during the dielectric breakdown produces high-pressure shock waves. This work explores the suitability of using acoustic emission (AE) generated from these shock waves and the elastic AE waves released on the workpiece due to the induced stress to monitor the performance and spark gap in EDM. The information content of the AE signals acquired at various machining conditions was extracted using AE RMS, spectral energy and peak amplitude. These features were able to well discriminate the machining condition, tool material, workpiece material, flushing pressure, current density, the initial surface roughness of the tool. Additionally, the AE signal features had a good and consistent correlation with the performance parameters, including material removal rate, surface roughness (Ra and Rq) and tool wear. The findings lay the groundwork to develop an effective, non-intrusive in-situ AE-monitoring system for performance and IEG condition in EDM.     

On the temperature and specific energy during electrodischarge diamond grinding (EDDG)

Electrodischarge diamond grinding (EDDG) is a hybrid machining process comprising conventional grinding and electrodischarge machining (EDM) as its constituent processes. It has the potential of shaping advanced engineering materials. Temperature of the workpiece and material removal rate are chosen as responses in full factorial (3³) design with current, pulse-on time, and wheel speed as process parameters. Specific energy is a vital consideration for any machining process. EDM is known for its inefficiency. Experiments were conducted with a specially fabricated bronze disk as tool electrode to evaluate specific energy in EDM, and the results were compared with that of EDDG. It has been found that specific energy required in EDDG is less than that in EDM with a rotating disk electrode.     

An analysis of overcut variation and coupling effects of dimensional variable in EDM process

In the electrical discharge machining (EDM) process, the overcut greatly affects the precision and accuracy of the workpiece dimensions. However, the overcut and the final workpiece dimensions are difficult to predict due to the non-linear, complex relationship among the electrode wear, the electrode diameter, electrical discharging parameters, and the machine positioning accuracy. In the present study, the variation of the side overcut and the bottom overcut, the electrode dimensions, the spark hole dimensions, and the machine positioning accuracy in the EDM process are investigated. Variance analysis is used in a batch process under different electrical discharging parameters. The experiment results show that the coupling effect between the electrode diameter and spark hole diameter is an important factor for estimating the variation of the side overcut in the EDM process. With inclusion of the coupling effects, the predicted variation of side and bottom overcut in a batch EDM process and the EDM machine positioning accuracy is shown to be in good agreement with experimental results.     

Electrothermal theory approach for numerical approximation of the μ-EDM process

A fundamental study of microelectric discharge machining (μ-EDM) based on the physics of single spark and electrothermal theory has been carried out. The machining phenomena in the μ-EDM process are investigated through simulations using finite element method. By creating the single-discharge crater, the topography is measured using an atomic force microscope and the simulation results compared with the experimental result. A temperature distribution along the radius and depth of the workpiece is thus reported. For verification purpose, single-discharge experiments with RC pulse circuit are performed with tungsten carbide as the electrode and stainless steel as the workpiece. The diameter-to-depth ratios of the crater obtained by the simulation and the experiments are 2.92 and 2.67, respectively. The simulation results are found to be in close agreement with experimental results.     

ANALYSIS OF SPARK PROFILES DURING EDM PROCESS

A fundamental study of electro discharge machining (EDM) based on the physics of an arc and heat transfer theory has been carried out. The field equations for electric potential and temperature in the spark region are simultaneously solved by employing the finite element method. Using the criterion of constant current at any cross section of a spark, the arc radii at different cross sections are corrected until convergence. The final spark shape obtained is noncylindrical, and has different radii at different cross sections. Also, the percent of heat input absorbed by cathode, anode, and dielectric has been calculated. The computed relative electrode wear has been compared with experimental results.     

Single discharge thermo-electrical modeling of micromachining mechanism in electric discharge machining

In this study, single discharge thermo-electrical model of workpiece material removal in electrical discharge machining (EDM) was developed. Developed model includes generation of energy in liquid media, variation of plasma channel radius and transfer of heat from the channel by the electrical discharge. Effect of generated energy in plasma channel on workpiece removal was theoretically investigated by using different experimental parameters used in literature. The developed model finds the temperature distribution in the workpiece material using finite element solver ANSYS Workbench (v.11) software. It’s assumed that the workpiece material reaches the melting point of workpiece material was removed from the surface. Electrical discharge process was simulated by using transient thermal analysis. The developed model has also been validated by comparing the theoretically obtained material removal values with the experimental ones.     

硬质合金磨削温度场的仿真与试验研究

在硬质合金磨削中,磨削能大部分转化为热量,导致磨削区温度升高,出现磨削烧伤和磨削裂纹等磨削缺陷问题。利用ANSYS中的载荷加载法以及单元生死技术对磨削过程进行温度仿真分析,得到硬质合金磨削温度场的整体分布规律,研究了不同工况条件下磨削区和已加工表面的温度变化。将仿真结果与试验测得结果进行对比,两者结果具有很好的一致性,说明采用仿真对磨削温度进行预测是可行的,随着工件进给速度的增大,仿真温度与试验温度越相近。根据仿真温度,可以更好地减少磨削缺陷,提高工件加工质量。     

Influence of discharge energy on machining characteristics in EDM

The machining characteristics of electrical discharge machining (EDM) directly depend on the discharge energy which is transformed into thermal energy in the discharge zone. The generated heat leads to high temperature, resulting in local melting and evaporation of workpiece material. However, the high temperature also impacts various physical and chemical properties of the tool and workpiece. This is why extensive knowledge of development and transformation of electrical energy into heat is of key importance in EDM. Based on the previous investigations, analytical dependence was established between the discharge energy parameters and the heat source characteristics in this paper. In addition, the thermal properties of the discharged energy were experimentally investigated and their influence on material removal rate, gap distance, surface roughness and recast layer was established. The experiments were conducted using copper electrode while varying discharge current and pulse duration. Analysis and experimental research conducted in this paper allow efficient selection of relevant parameters of discharge energy for the selection of most favorable EDM machining conditions.     

Quadratic curve heat flux distribution model in the grinding zone

In order to estimate temperature distribution and the influence of grinding parameters on grinding temperature in the grinding zone, a theoretical model used for calculating and simulating the grinding process must be established. Many simplified heat source models developed previously have some errors compared with the actual heat flux to the workpiece. Therefore, based on the triangular heat flux distribution model and temperature distributions measured, an inverse method for the heat transfer mechanism in the grinding zone was investigated and a quadratic curve heat flux distribution model was developed to determine the heat flux distribution and predict the surface temperature of the workpiece. From the theoretical expression of heat flux to the workpiece, it has been found that the quadratic curve heat flux is the superposition of square law heat flux, triangular heat flux, and uniform heat flux in the grinding zone. By comparison of theoretical analysis with the experimental results, it has been demonstrated that the solution using a quadratic curve heat flux can improve the grinding model by decreasing the error, although the uniform and triangular heat fluxes can explain the condition of the heat flux to the workpiece along the grinding zone.     

Simulation of thermal stresses due to grinding

An efficient finite element procedure has been developed to calculate the temperatures and stresses arising due to a moving source of heat. The procedure is applied to calculate the thermal stresses produced in hardened steels during grinding. The thermal load during grinding is modeled as a uniformly or triangularly distributed, 2D heat source moving across the surface of a half-space, which is insulated or subjected to convective cooling. The grinding of elastic and elastic–plastic workpiece materials has been simulated. The calculated transient stresses and temperatures in an elastic solid are found to be in good agreement with prior analytical and numerical results. In an elastic–plastic workpiece material, for which no analytical solution is available for the residual stress distributions, the finite element calculations show that the near surface residual stress is predominantly tensile and that the magnitude of this stress increases with increasing heat flux values. Based on an analysis of the effects of workpiece velocity, heat flux magnitude and convective cooling, on the residual stress distributions in an elastic–plastic solid, it is seen that the calculated thermal stress distributions are consistent with experimentally measured residual stresses on ground surfaces. Furthermore, the results explain often cited observations pertaining to thermally induced grinding stresses in metals.