Experimental and numerical study of the temperature field during creep feed grinding

Abstract

Creep feed grinding is a mechanical process that allows for a higher removal rate of material when compared to surface grinding. The risk of thermal damage is also present in creep feed grinding and must be avoided. In this work an experimental process to determine the temperature evolution on the surface of a steel workpiece, during a creep feed grinding operation is described. The workpiece is placed on a piezoelectric dynamometer and one thermocouple is placed on the workpiece, inside a small hole. The force acting on the workpiece, measured by the piezoelectric dynamometer and the temperature measured by the thermocouple are registered simultaneously and continuously during a passage of the grinding wheel. The obtained results are then compared with the numerical results, obtained using the finite element method (Mamalis et al., Int J Adv Manuf Technol 22:761–767, 2003). The authors show that it is possible to use a simplified finite element model to obtain the temperature field during a creep feed grinding operation, while using significantly different grinding wheels. The proposed finite element model is based on the model proposed by Jaeger (Proc R Soc NSW 76:203–224, 1942). The grinding thermal process is simulated using the commercial finite element code ABAQUS (SIMULIA 2007).