Parametric and heat affected zone study on CO2 laser cutting of acrylic

Laser cutting is a non-contact machining employed for producing small, intricate shapes. The acrylic materials are widely used in many applications. The parametric and heat affected zone study of acrylic materials by using CO₂ laser machining is attempted in this research to evaluate the process variables, laser scanning speed, current, and nozzle-work material gap.•Research result indicate that the higher the current and the higher the cutting speed, result in higher the material removal rate•Other parameter such as current and nozzle, work material gap are also significant impact on the cutting process of the acrylic material.•In addition, heat affect zone increase with laser scanning speed.

An investigation on gas emission concentration and relative emission rate of the near-dry wire-cut electrical discharge machining process

Wire-cut electrical discharge machining (WEDM) is the highly essential unconventional electrothermal machining process to cut the contour profile in the hard materials in modern production industries. The various environmental impacting contaminants (by evaporating and reacting liquid dielectric fluid) have been produced during the conventional WEDM process and are harmful to the machine operators. These wastes have been minimized by the near-dry WEDM process in which the pressurized air mixed with a small amount of water is used as a dielectric medium. In this research, influences of machining parameters (air pressure, flow rate mixing water, spark current, and pulse width) on gas emission concentration (GEC), material removal rate (MRR), and relative emission rate (RER) of near-dry WEDM process have been optimized by the Taguchi analysis. RER has been determined to analyze the variations of gas emission concentration per unit quantity of material removal by changing the process parameters. It was revealed that the maximum air pressure and flow rate of mixing water have been predicted as significant parameters on GEC and RER. While comparing wet and near-dry WEDM processes, the material removal rate of near-dry process is comparable to that of wet WEDM with minimum GEC and RER.

Methods and variables in Electrical discharge machining of titanium alloy - A review

Titanium alloys are difficult to machine using conventional methods, therefore, nonconventional processes are often chosen in many applications. Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is one of those nonconventional processes that is used frequently for shaping titanium alloys with their respective pros and cons. However, a good understanding of this process is very difficult to achieve as research results are not properly connected and presented. Therefore, this study investigates different types of EDM processes such as, wire EDM, die-sink EDM, EDM drill and hybrid EDM used to machine titanium alloys. Machining mechanism, tool electrode, dielectric, materials removal rate (MRR), and surface integrity of all these processes are critically analysed and correlated based on the evidence accessible in literature. Machining process suffer from lower material removal rate and high tool wear while applied on titanium alloys. Formation of recast layer, heat affected zone and tool wear is common in all types of EDM processes. Additional challenge in wire EDM of titanium alloys is wire breakage under severe machining conditions. The formation of TiC and TiO₂ are noticed in recast layer depending on the type of dielectrics. Removal of debris from small holes during EDM drilling is a challenge. All these restricts the applications EDMed titanium alloys in high-tech applications such as, aerospace and biomedical areas. Most of these challenges come up due to extraordinary properties such as, low thermal conductivity, high melting point and high hardness, of titanium alloys. Though hybrid EDM has been introduced and there is some work on simulation of EDM process, further developments in EDM of this alloy is required for widening the application of this methods.

A systematic review on powder mixed electrical discharge machining

The advancement in the field of material science has gifted us new electrically conductive materials having good mechanical properties and thermal characteristics. Machining these materials using conventional machining process is a challenging task. Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is a well-established machining process used to manufacture process hard materials having geometrically complex shapes, that are extremely difficult to machine traditionally. EDM is a thermo-electric process in which material is eroded by rapidly recurring sparks between the non-contacted electrode and workpiece. As there is no direct contact between the electrodes in EDM, machining defects like mechanical stresses, clattering & vibration do not create problems during machining. In spite of the advantages of the process, its use in industry is limited owing to poor surface finish and low volumetric material removal. To overcome these drawbacks, the metallic powder is mixed in the dielectric fluid, which increases its conductive strength and increases the spark gap distance between the tool and workpiece. This new evolved material removal process is called Powder Mixed Electrical Discharge Machining (PMEDM). The added powder significantly affects the performance of the EDM process. The objective of this review is to benefit the researchers to understand the PMEDM concept precisely and study the process parameters furthermore in particulars to get enhancements in the process to achieve better quality levels.

Influence of process parameters in electrical discharge machining on H13 die steel

H13 die steel is characterized by its high hardness and need for special surface features that are obtained by nontraditional machining processes. Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is used to machine hard materials and to produce complicated shapes. In this work, different EDM process parameters are investigated on H13 die steel. Several experiments are conducted to study the effect of three process parameters: peak current (I_p), pulse on-time (T_on) and electrode material on the machining process of H13 die steel. The machining process is evaluated by material removal rate (MRR), electrode wear ratio (EWR%) and surface roughness (SR) as indicators of the process efficiency in terms of quality and cost. Taguchi method was used to investigate the significant effect of process parameters on the performance measurements and the optimal parameters of the EDM process. For analysis and explanations Minitab version 17 software was used. Different process parameters were experimentally investigated and statistically analyzed and the results showed that the copper electrode leads to the highest MRR and lowest EWR%; whereas the brass electrode leads to the lowest SR.

Investigations on the critical feed rate guaranteeing the effectiveness of rotary ultrasonic machining

Rotary ultrasonic machining (RUM) is a well-known and efficient method for manufacturing holes in brittle materials. RUM is characterized by improved material removal rates, reduced cutting forces and reduced edge chipping sizes at the hole exit. The aim of this study is to investigate the critical feed rate to guarantee the effectiveness of RUM. Experimental results on quartz glass and sapphire specimens show that when the feed rate exceeds a critical value, the cutting force increases abruptly, accompanied by a significant decrease of ultrasonic amplitude. An analytical model for the prediction of critical feed rates is presented, based on indentation fracture mechanic and the theory of impact of vibrating systems. This model establishes the theoretical relationships between the critical feed rate, idling resonant ultrasonic amplitude and spindle speed. The results predicted by the analytical model were in good agreement with the experimental results.