Abstract
Abstract
The electrochemical grinding (ECG) process offers a number of advantages over conventional grinding, such as low induced stresses, large depths of cut, increased wheel life and the ability to machine delicate workpieces. However, one disadvantage is the difficulty of controlling the dimensional accuracy of the workpiece. In the present work the use of pulsed voltage in ECG is investigated for two workpiece materials, AISI 01 tool and die steel and stainless steel 304. The effect on resulting workpiece dimensional accuracy is assessed in terms of repeatability of overcut.
Under conditions where an overcut of 0.03 mm is expected in conventional ECG, a reduction to zero overcut has been obtained by appropriately pulsing the applied voltage. The ranges of such operating conditions have been quantified for the two materials. Further, it is seen that, under finishing conditions appropriate to obtaining mechanical abrasive contribution at the final workpiece surface, a repeatability within 0.010 mm is possible. Repeatability deteriorates to 0.018 mm when electrochemical dissolution is the dominant contributor to metal removal. Pulsed ECG is found to be a convenient means of adjusting operating conditions to control overcut and its repeatability.