CME387 NON-TRADITIONAL MACHINING PROCESSES UNIT II

GRT INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING AND

TECHNOLOGY,TIRUTTANI
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
CME387 NON-TRADITIONAL MACHINING
PROCESSES (III YEAR/V SEM)
REGULATION 2021

UNIT-II

CHEMICAL AND ELECTRO-CHEMICAL ENERGY

BASED PROCESSES

Introduction
The metal is removed from the work piece through controlled etching or chemical
attack of the workpiece material in contact with a chemical solution

CHEMICAL MACHINING PROCESS

In this method, the metal is removed by ion displacement of the work piece material
in contact with achemical solution.

Examples

1. Electro-chemical machining (ECM)

2. Electro-chemical Grinding (ECG)

3. Electro-chemical Honing (ECH)

4. Electro-chemical Deburring (ECD)

Chemical Machining
 Chemical
machining (CM) is
the controlled
dissolution of
workpiece material

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(etching) by means
of a strong
chemical reagent
(etchant).
 In CM material is removed from selected areas of workpiece by immersing it in a
chemical reagents or etchants; such as acids and alkaline solutions.
 Material is removed by microscopic electrochemical cell action, as occurs in corrosion or
chemical dissolution of a metal.
 This controlled chemical dissolution will simultaneously etch all exposed surfaces even
though the penetration rates of the material removal may be only 0.0025–0.1 mm/min.
Processes in Machining
 Maskant coating
 Cleaning ,Drying
 Dipping in chemical solution
 Stirring & Heating – For Uniform Depth, Washing

Steps in chemical machining
Residual stress relieving: If the part to be machined has residual stresses from the
previous processing, these stresses first should be relieved in order to prevent warping after
chemical milling.

Preparing: The surfaces are degreased and cleaned thoroughly to ensure both good
adhesion of the masking material and the uniform material removal.

Masking: Masking material is applied (coating or protecting areas not to be etched).

Etching: The exposed surfaces are machined chemically with etchants.

Demasking: After machining, the parts should be washed thoroughly to prevent further
reactions with or exposure to any etchant residues. Then the rest of the masking material is
removed and the part is cleaned and inspected.

Applications:

Chemical machining is used in the aerospace industry to remove shallow layers

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of material fromlarge aircraft components missile skin panels, extruded parts for airframes.

MASKANTS

The process essentially involves bathing the cutting areas in a corrosive chemical
known as an etchant, which reacts with the material in the area to be cut and causes the
solid material to be dissolved; inert substances known as maskants are used to protect
specific areas of the material as resists.

Methods of Maskants

• Scribed and Peeled Maskants

• Photo resists Maskants

Electrochemical Machining (ECM)

Introductio
n Electrochemical
machining (ECM)
is a metal- removal
process based on
the principle of
reverse
electroplating.

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 In this process, particles travel from the anodic material (workpiece) toward the cathodic
material (machining tool).
 A current of electrolyte fluid carries away the deplated material before it has a chance to
reach the machining tool. The cavity produced is the female mating image of the tool
shape.
 Similar to EDM, the workpiece hardness is not a factor, making ECM suitable for
machining difficult-to –machine materials.
 Difficult shapes can be made by this process on materials regardless of their hardness. A
schematic representation of ECM process is shown in Figure.
 The ECM tool is positioned very close to the workpiece and a low voltage, high
amperage DC current is passed between the workpiece and electrode.

Advantages of ECM

 The components are not subject to either thermal or mechanical stress.

 No tool wears during ECM process.

 Fragile parts can be machined easily as there is no stress involved.

 ECM deburring can debur difficult to access areas of parts.

 High surface finish (up to 25 µm in) can be achieved by ECM process.

 Complex geometrical shapes in high-strength materials particularly in the aerospace

industry for the mass production of turbine blades, jet-engine parts and nozzles can
be machined repeatedly and accurately.

 Deep holes can be made by this process.

Limitations of ECM

 ECM is not suitable to produce sharp square corners or flat bottoms

because of the tendencyfor the electrolyte to erode away sharp profiles.

 ECM can be applied to most metals but, due to the high equipment
costs, it isused primarily for highly specialized applications.

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Material removal rate, MRR, in electrochemical machining:

MRR = C .I. h (cm3 /min)

C: specific (material) removal rate (e.g., 0.2052 cm3 /amp-min for nickel);

I: current (amp);

h: current efficiency (90–100%).

The rates at which metal can electrochemically remove are in proportion to the
current passed through the electrolyte and the elapsed time for that operation. Many factors
other than current influence the rate of machining. These involve electrolyte type, rate of
electrolyte flow, and some other process condition.

ELECTRO-CHEMICAL GRINDING (ECG)

(OR) ELECTROLYTIC GRINDING

Principle

Machining operation by the

combined action of Electro-
chemical effect and
conventional grinding
operation

90 % - Metal removed

by chemical Action 10 %

-Metal removed by

Grinding Action

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 ECG also called electrolytic grinding is similar to ECM, except that the cathode is an
electrically conductive abrasive grinding wheel instead of a tool shaped like the contour to
be machined.

 Used primarily to machine difficult to cut alloys such as stainless steel, Hastelloy,
Inconel, Monel, Waspally and tungsten carbide, heat treated workpiece, fragile or
thermo-sensitive parts, or parts for which stress-free and burr-free results are required.
 ECG removes metal by a combination of electrochemical (responsible for 90% of
material removal) and grinding actions. The grinding action removes the buildup of oxide
film on the surface of the workpiece.
 Less power is needed for ECG than for ECM since the machining area is smaller and the
abrasive in the wheel is removing the oxide film – current ranges from 5 to 1000A are
most common, with a voltage of 3 to 15V over an electrolyte gap of approximately
0.25mm or less and wheel speeds of 1100 to 1800m/min.
 Many similarities between ECG and conventional grinding make this one of the easiest
ECM based processes to both understand and implement – grinding wheel closely
resemble their conventional counterparts with the exception that ECG wheels use an
electrically conductive abrasive bonding agent; electrolyte is introduced to the work area
in the same manner that coolant is introduced in conventional grinding.

Process parameters
 ECG exhibits MRRs that are up to 10 times faster than conventional grinding on
materials harder than 60HRC; although MRRs are high, ECG cannot obtain the
tolerances achieved by conventional grinding.

 The removal rate for ECG is governed by the current density, just as in ECM: as with
ECM, the higher the current density, the faster the removal rate and the better the
resulting surface finish.

 Feed rates vary with different parameters, depending on the grinding method: if the
feed rate is running too slowly for the application, a large overcut will be produced that
will result in poor surface finishes and tolerances and if the feed rate is too fast, the
abrasive particles will be prematurely forced into the workpiece, resulting in excessive
wheel wear.

Advantages
 No thermal damage to workpiece

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 Elimination of grinding burn , Absence of work hardening

 Long-lasting wheels – less truing

 Higher MRR;

 Single pass grinding - reduced cost of grinding;

 Absence of burrs on the finished surface; Improved surface finish with no grinding
scratches;

 Reduced pressure of work against the wheel – no distortion;

 In ECG, the ECM action is efficient

Disadvantages
 High capital cost / Higher cost of grinding wheel

 Corrosive environment.

 High preventive maintenance cost

 Tolerances achieved are low.

 Difficult to optimize due to the complexity of the process.

 Non-conductive materials cannot be machined.

 Not economical for soft materials – noncompetitive removal rates compared to

conventional methodsfor readily machinable metals.

 Requires disposal and filtering of electrolytes.

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ELECTRO-CHEMICAL HONING (ECH)

It is a process in which it combines the high removal characteristics of Electrochemical

Dissolution (ECD) and Mechanical Abrasion (MA) of conventional Honing.

Tool consists of a
hollow stainless steel body
that has expandable,
nonconductive honing
stones protruding from at
least three locations around
the circumference. The
honing stones are identical
with those used in
conventional
honing operations, except that they must resist the corrosiveness of the electrolyte. The
honing stones are mounted on the tool body with a spring-loaded mechanism so that each
of the stones exerts equal pressure against the workpiece.

Working

 At the beginning of the ECH cycle, the stones protrude only 0.075-
0.127mm from the stainless steel body, establishing the gap through which
the electrolyte flows.
 The electrolyte enters the tool body via a sliding inlet sleeve from which it
exits into the tool-workpiece gap through small holes in the tool body.
 After passing through the gap, the electrolyte flows from the workpiece
through the gap at the top andbottom of the bore.
 The mechanical action of the tool is the same as with conventional honing;

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the tool is rotated and reciprocated so that the stones abrade the entire
length of the bore.
 Electrolytes used in ECH are essentially the same as those used in ECM,
although the control of pH, composition and sludge is less critical because
the abrasive action of the stones tends to correct any resulting surface
irregularities.
 As in ECM, the electrolytes are recirculated and reused after passing
through appropriate filtration, and the most commonly used electrolytes are
sodium chloride and sodium nitrate.

Process parameters

• Machines are available that deliver up to 6000 amp

• Current density at the workpiece can range from 12 to 47amp/cm2

• Working voltages are 6-30VDC

• The electrolyte is delivered to the work area at pressures of 0.5-1MPa

• ECH can remove materials at rates up to 100% faster than conventional honing, the
gain being morepronounced as the material hardness increases

• Machine capacities are currently able to accommodate bore lengths up to 600mm and bore
diameters from
9.5 to 150mm

Advantages

 Increased MRR particularly on hard materials

 Since most of the material is removed electrochemically, honing stone life is greatly
extended

 Burr-free operation

 Unlike conventional honing, no micro-scratches are left on the work surface

 Less pressure required between stones and work

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 Reduced noise and distortion when honing thin walled tubes

 Cooler action leading to increased accuracy with less material damage

 As with all ECM-based processes, ECH imparts no residual stresses in the work piece

 Capable of achieving surface finishes of 0.05µ and dimensional accuracies of

±0.012mm

Disadvantages

• More number of equipments used

• Cost of machine is high

• Required Skilled labors

• Hard materials only machined.

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