Study of magnetic abrasive finishing in seal ring groove surface operations

Abstract

Because the seal ring groove is used in conjunction with rubber seals, it needs a higher surface quality. Traditional finishing methods are difficult to implement on its bottom and side synchronization finishing because of the special structure of the seal ring groove, and the finishing efficiency is low. To resolve these problems, a magnetic abrasive finishing (MAF) process has been created. As a non-traditional precise machining process, MAF has many advantages. By utilizing the magnet to generate a magnetic field, the magnetic abrasive particles (MAPs) are bound and formed as a flexible magnetic abrasive brush (MAB) for pressing and finishing the workpiece. The external seal ring groove surface can be polished synchronously in the MAF mechanism. Hence, three types of flux paths with the magnet poles in 45°, 90°, and 180° layout were simulated and compared by ANSYS software. The magnet poles’ arrangement and the magnetic flux density were confirmed using measuring equipment. The synchronous MAF device was developed based on the simulation and detection results. The viscosity of lubricant (the percentage between lubricant and water), the spindle speed, the gap between magnet poles and the bottom of the ring groove (gap 1), and the gap between magnet poles and the sides of the ring groove (gap 2) are selected as study objects. Furthermore, the experimental data has been collected using the orthogonal experimental design, and the experimental data on process parameters have been analyzed to determine the optimal conditions. The finished surface of the ring groove about the bottom or side surface has been detected based on the optimal conditions, and it has been found that the surface roughness from initial Ra4.3 μm decreased to Ra0.6 μm. The 3D surface topography has become more uniform and smoother. The results revealed that the MAF can provide a highly efficient way of obtaining high quality and can operate the external seal ring groove surface synchronously.