Abrasive water jet machining (AWJM) on glass fiber composite reinforced with aluminium waste grain: An experimental investigation

Abstract

Glass fiber composites are distinguished by unique qualities like a high strength-to-weight ratio, ease of availability, strong corrosion resistance, outstanding design flexibility, better electrical resistance, and high cost-effectiveness. To increase the mechanical properties of the glass fiber-reinforced polymer composite, the industrial waste recovered aluminium grain was considered in the present study. AWJM machining experiments are carried out to examine the effects of machining parameters such as abrasive flow rate, water jet pressure, and nozzle traverse speed on the desired machining responses such as surface roughness (Ra) and kerf taper (KT). Each parameter's range of values is defined at three distinct levels, and Box Behnken is used to design factors such that all interactions between output variables and input parameters are examined. Besides, it was found that the kerf was influenced by the amount of waste aluminium grain reinforced in the glass fiber composites, which ranged from 5% to 15 %. Subsequently, cut surface smoothness was majorly affected by the addition of aluminium grain. Finally, confirmation tests are carried out on specimens of fabricated hybrid composites machined at the optimal parameters specified optimal parameter. The optimal Ra and KT values of all optimization issues are found to be closer to the experimentally obtained values of confirmation tests.