Development of the Cylindrical Wire Electrical Discharge Machining Process.

Abstract

Results of applying the wire Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) process to generate precise cylindrical forms on hard, difficult-to-machine materials are presented. A precise, flexible, and corrosion-resistant underwater rotary spindle was designed and added to a conventional two-axis wire EDM machine to enable the generation of free-form cylindrical geometries. A detailed spindle error analysis identifies the major source of error at different frequency. The mathematical model for the material removal of cylindrical wire EDM process is derived. Experiments were conducted to explore the maximum material removal rate for cylindrical and 2D wire EDM of carbide and brass work-materials. Compared to the 2D wire EDM, higher maximum material removal rates may be achieved in the cylindrical wire EDM. This study also investigates the surface integrity and roundness of parts created by the cylindrical wire EDM process. For carbide parts, an arithmetic average surface roughness and roundness as low as 0.68 and 1.7 {micro}m, respectively, can be achieved. Surfaces of the cylindrical EDM parts were examined using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) to identify the craters, sub-surface recast layers and heat-affected zones under various process parameters. This study has demonstrated that the cylindrical wire EDM process parameters can be adjusted to achieve either high material removal rate or good surface integrity.