Grinding characteristics and removal mechanisms of unidirectional carbon fibre reinforced silicon carbide ceramic matrix composites

Abstract

The grinding performance of unidirectional carbon fibre reinforced silicon carbide ceramic matrix composites (Cf/SiC) was investigated in this paper. The effects of the fibre orientation and grinding depth on the surface integrity and grinding forces and an understanding of the grinding mechanisms are the primary concerns of this article. This problem is relatively unexplored; therefore, the main value of this research is to improve the processing quality and reduce the production cost. In the Cf/SiC grinding procedure, cracks, fibre wear, interfacial debonding, fibre pull-out and outcrop can be detected on the ground surface. The grinding depth and deflection angle have been shown to have a notable influence on the surface quality in different datum planes. A suitable grinding depth and deflection angle should be carefully chosen to achieve good surface quality in different machined surfaces. Specifically, the surface quality decreases and the grinding forces increase with increasing grinding depth. In addition, greater grinding surface quality is observed at β = 90°, i.e., γ = 0°, but poorer machined surfaces are obtained at α = 0°, i.e., γ = 90°. The surface topography, roughness and grinding forces of unidirectional Cf/SiC could be forecasted according to the analysis conclusions. This research is expected to offer guidelines for increasing the machining quality of Cf/SiC.