Polarization studies- A method to select and optimize electrolyte for electrochemical micromachining process

Abstract

This paper aims to identify the most suitable electrolyte for electrochemical micromachining of AISI 304 stainless steel by polarization studies. Corrosion behavior of the material will be analyzed using specialized potentiostat equipment. The electrochemical studies were conducted to examine the impact of different electrolytes on the corrosion behavior of SS304 alloy. These corrosion studies, performed with various electrolytes, help determine the optimal electrolyte for AISI 304 stainless steel. Based on the optimized results obtained from the electrochemical studies, a preferred mixed electrolyte for AISI 304 stainless steel was identified. To micro-drill AISI 304 stainless steel alloy, electrochemical micromachining experiments were conducted using suitable input parameters and the preferred electrolyte. The micro-drilling was performed with an electrically conductive 300 µm diameter copper tool on AISI 304 stainless steel (SS304), achieving a drilling depth of 300 µm. Voltage, duty ratio and feed rate are the input parameters considered for machining AISI 304 stainless steel. The output responses are corrosion behavior and 3D surface roughness (Sa). The corrosion behavior was analyzed through Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) studies to examine the surface obtained. The results clearly demonstrated that the mixed electrolytes utilized for machining SS304 alloy yielded favorable outcomes in terms of both geometric aspects and surface characteristics. Furthermore, the experimental findings confirmed that polarization studies improve machining characteristics and reduce the number of trials required to identify the suitable electrolyte. By applying polarization techniques to ECMM, energy consumption and costs associated with the process can be reduced.