MODULE 3

UNCONVENTIONAL MACHINING PROCESS

OR
NON TRADITIONAL MACHINING PROCESS
NEEDS FOR UCM PROCESS
UNCONVENTIONAL MACHINING
PROCESS
• In this process, there is no direct physical contact
between the tool and the workpiece
• These processes directly utilize some form of
energy for metal machining
• Therefore the tool material need not to be harder
than the workpiece as in conventional machining.
 CLASSIFICATION OF UCM PROCESSES
Electro-Thermal Processes
➢ Electro-discharge machining(EDM)
➢ Electron beam machining (EBM)
➢ Laser beam machining (LBM)
➢ Plasma Arc machining (PAM)
➢ Ion Beam Machining (IBM)
Chemical Processes
➢ Chemical milling (CHM)
➢ Photochemical milling (PCM)
Mechanical Processes
➢ Abrasive jet machining (AJM)
➢ Ultrasonic machining (USM)
➢ Water jet machining (WJM)
➢ Abrasive water jet machining(AWJM)
Electrochemical Processes
➢ Electrochemical machining (ECM)
➢ Electrochemical Grinding(ECG)
➢ Electro jet Drilling (EJD)
ELECTRIC DISCHARGE MACHINING
(EDM)
• Electric discharge machining (EDM) sometimes
colloquially also referred to as spark machining, spark
eroding is a manufacturing process whereby a desired
shape is obtained using electrical discharges (sparks)
• Material is removed from the workpiece by a series of
rapidly recurring current discharges between two
electrodes, separated by a dielectric liquid and subject
to an electric voltage.
• One of the electrodes is called the tool-electrode
(cathode) or simply the tool or electrode while the
other is called the workpiece–electrode (anode) or
workpiece.
In EDM,

✓ A potential difference is applied between the tool and workpiece.

✓ Both the tool and the work material are to be conductors of
electricity. The tool and the work material are immersed in a

dielectric medium.
✓ A gap is maintained between the tool and the workpiece.
✓ Depending upon the applied potential difference and the gap between
the tool and workpiece, an electric field would be established.
✓ Generally the tool is connected to the negative terminal of the
generator and the workpiece is connected to positive terminal.

✓ As the electric field is established between the tool and the job, the
free electrons on the tool are subjected to electrostatic forces.

✓ If the work function or the bonding energy of the electrons is less,

electrons would be emitted from the tool (assuming it to be
connected to the negative terminal).

✓ Such emission of electrons are called or termed as cold emission.

✓ “Cold emitted” electrons are then accelerated towards the job
through the dielectric medium.

✓ As they gain velocity and energy, and start moving towards the job,
there would be collisions between the electrons and dielectric
molecules.

✓ Such collision may result in ionisation of the dielectric molecule

depending upon the work function or ionisation energy of the
dielectric molecule and the energy of the electron.

✓ Thus, as the electrons get accelerated, more positive ions and

electrons would get generated due to collisions.
✓ This cyclic process would increase the concentration of electrons and
ions in the dielectric medium between the tool and the job at the
spark gap.

✓ Concentration would be so high that the matter existing in that

channel could be characterised as “plasma”.

✓ Electrical resistance of such plasma channel would be very less.

✓ Thus all of a sudden, a large number of electrons will flow from the
tool to the job and ions from the job to the tool.

✓ This is called avalanche motion of electrons.

✓ Such movement of electrons and ions can be visually seen as a spark.

✓ Thus the electrical energy is dissipated as the thermal energy of the

spark.

✓ High speed electrons then impinge on the job and ions on the tool.

✓ Kinetic energy of the electrons and ions on impact with the surface of
the job and tool respectively would be converted into thermal energy or
heat flux.

✓ Such intense localised heat flux leads to extreme instantaneous confined

rise in temperature which would be in excess of 10,000°C.
 ELECTRIC DISCHARGE MACHINING
(EDM)

Voltage:50 to 450 V
Electrode gap:0.01mm to 0.5mm
MRR:2 to 400 mm3/min
Dielectric – low viscosity hydrocarbon oil
❖ Dielectric fluid should provide an oxygen free machining
environment.
❖ It should have enough strong dielectric resistance so that it does not
breakdown electrically too easily but at the same time ionise when
electrons collide with its molecule.
❖ During sparking it should be thermally resistant as well.
Generally kerosene and deionised water is used as dielectric fluid in
EDM.
Tap water cannot be used as it ionises too early and thus breakdown
due to presence of salts as impurities occur
Dielectric medium is generally flushed around the spark zone. It is also
applied through the tool to achieve efficient removal of molten material.
EDM Tool Material

TOOL MATERIAL USED IN EDM AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS

 Process parameters
Typical parameters used in the EDM process are:

Spark gap 0.0125 to 0.15mm

Current 0.5 to 400A
Voltage (DC) 40 to 300 V
Pulse duration 2 to 200 µs
Dielectric pressure <0.2 MPa
ADVANTAGES
• EDM is a no-contact and no-force process, making it well-suited for delicate or
fragile parts that cannot take the stress of traditional machining
• Cutting complex shapes and thin-walled configurations without distortion
• Tolerances of +/- 0.005 can be achieved
• Material hardness does not affect the process – Tungsten Carbide – Stellite –
Hastelloy – Nitralloy – Waspaloy – Nimonic – Inconel all can be successfully
machined by EDM
• The material removal rates are almost comparable with that of the
conventional machining process.
• Since no cutting forces are acting on the tool, high aspect ratio surfaces can be
machined using the EDM process.
• The process is generally highly automated with very little operator skill
required.
DISADVANTAGES
• The wear rate on the electrode is considerably higher. Sometimes it may be
necessary to use more than one electrode to finish the job
• The workpiece should be electrically conductive to be machined using the
EDM process
• The energy required for the operation is more than that of the conventional
process and hence will be more expensive
• The material removal rate is low
EDM - APPLICATIONS
ULTRASONIC MACHINING (USM)
• Ultrasonic machining (USM) is one of the non-traditional
machining processes.
• The working principle of this process resembles with conventional
and metal cutting as in this process abrasives contained in a slurry
are driven at high velocity against the workpiece by a tool
vibrating at low amplitude and high frequency.
• Amplitude is kept of the order of 0.07 mm and frequency is
maintained at approximately 20,000 Hz.
• The workpiece material is removed in the form of extremely small
chips. Normally very hard particle dust is included in the slurry
like, Al2O2, silicon carbide, boron carbide or diamond dust.
• The working principle of USM is the same as that of conventional
machining that is material of the workpiece is removed by
continuous abrasive action of hard particles vibrating in the slurry.
Abrasive slurry acts as a multipoint cutting tool and does a similar
action as done by a cutting edge.
Schematic Diagram of USM
• In ultrasonic machining, a tool of the desired shape
vibrates at an ultrasonic frequency (19 ~ 25 kHz) with
an amplitude of around 15 – 50 μm over the
workpiece. Generally, the tool is pressed downward
with a feed force, F. Between the tool and workpiece,
the machining zone is flooded with hard abrasive
particles generally in the form of water-based slurry. As
the tool vibrates over the workpiece, the abrasive
particles act as the indenters and indent both the work
material and the tool. The abrasive particles as they
indent the workpiece, material get removed. USM is
mainly used for machining brittle materials which are
poor conductors of electricity and thus cannot be
processed by Electrochemical and Electro-discharge
machining. The electrode gap normally varies from
0.005 mm to 0.50 mm.
 Process characteristics of USM
1. Material Removal Rate:
Can machine the work pieces harder than 40 HRC to 60 HRC like carbides,
ceramics, tungsten glass that cannot be machined by conventional
methods. MRR is inversely proportional to the cutting area of the tool.
Tool vibration, size and type of abrasive and concentration of the slurry
also affect the [Link] is not applicable to soft and ductile materials
such as copper, lead, ductile steel and plastics, which absorb energy by
deformation. . Linear material removal rate: –0.025 to 25 mm/min.
2. Tolerance range: 7 to 25 microns.
3. Accuracy :Holes up to 76 microns have been drilled. Hole depths up to
51 mm have been achieved easily. Hole depth of 152 mm deep is achieved
by special flushing techniques.
4. Tool wear: The ratio of volume of material removed from the workpiece
to that removed from the tool is defined as tool wear ration in USM. When
glass is machined with stainless steel tool , wear ratio is observed as
100:1, while brass tool resulted in 40:1.
5. Surface finish: –surface finish in USM depends on the size of the
abrasive particles, work materials and amplitude of tool. Finer sizes of
abrasives can develop surface finish of 0.2 - 0.8 micron to 0.75 micron.
Non-directional surface texture is possible compared to conventional
grinding. Radial overcut may be as low as 1.5 to 4 times the mean,
abrasive grain size.
Advantages of USM
1. Non-metal (because of the poor electrical conductivity) that cannot be
machined by EDM and ECM can very well be machined by USM.
2. Work piece after machining is free from any residual stress as no force
or heat is subject to it during the machining process.
3. It can be used machine hard, brittle, fragile and nonconductive material
4. Very good dimensional accuracy and surface finish can be obtained.
5. Operational cost is low.
6. The process is environmental friendly as it is noiseless, no chemical and
heating.
Disadvantages of USM
1. Its metal removal rate (MRR) is very low and it cannot be used for large
machining
2. Its initial setup cost and cost of tool is very high
3. Not recommended for soft and ductile material due to their ductility.
4. Slurry may have to be replaced frequently.
5. It is difficult to drill deep holes, as slurry movement is restricted
6. Tool wear rate is high due to abrasive particles
Applications
1. Used for machining hard and brittle metallic alloys,
semiconductors, glass, ceramics, carbides etc. Used for
grinding Quartz, Glass, ceramics
2. USM can be used to cut industrial diamonds
3. USM enables a dentist to drill a hole of any shape on
teeth without any pain
4. Used for machining round, square, irregular shaped holes
and surface impressions.
5. Used in machining of dies for wire drawing, punching and
blanking operations
6. Cutting holes with curved or spiral centre lines and
cutting threads in glass etc
 LASER BEAM MACHINING (LBM)
• The term Laser is stands for Light Amplification by
Stimulated Emission of Radiation
• The laser is a device for producing a very narrow beam
of highly intensive monochromatic coherent light. Laser
beam machining(LBM) is a non-conventional process in
which material is removed using the laser beam to
produce heat and due to that heat, metal is removed
from the surface of the workpiece, due to vaporization.
• The laser beam machining process is used
for machining brittle materials with low conductivity,
But it can be used on almost every material.
• The most commonly used solid-state laser is the ruby
laser (crystalline aluminium oxide). these lasers are
fabricated into rods about 150mm and their ends are
finished to close optical tolerance. The ruby crystal is
dropped with a small amount of chromium
oxide(0.05%). The laser is pumped by a flash of high-
intensity light (xenon flash lamp). The xenon lamp is fired
by a discharged by a large capacitance through it. The
intense radiation from the lamp excites fluorescent
impurity atom chromium to a higher energy level. when
the atom falls to the original energy level, an intense of
visible light is emitted (LASER).
• When the light is reflected from the coated ends. The
chain reaction results in a stimulated avalanche of light.
This light is highly coherent and the light is focussed by
ordinary lenses onto the workpiece and the metal
removal process takes place.
 Process characteristics
• Material Removal Rate (MRR)
A laser can be used for cutting and drilling. cutting speed of 4m/min
is good to achieve an MRR of 5mm3/min, power density influences
cutting depth and hence MRR. Smaller spot sizes can be obtained
by focusing the laser beam to the surface. smaller spot size leads to
high power intensity and increases MRR.
Accuracy: round holes are difficult to obtain by laser drilling. To
overcome this difficulty the workpiece is continuously rotated as
the drilling progresses. A Taper of 0.5mm per 10mm is usually
expected on the holes drilled by laser drilling.
Heat affected zone
During laser machining, a thin layer is formed on the cut surface.
Under a microscope, this layer appears as white and is called as
white layer. During laser machining, the work material absorbs heat
from the laser for localized melting. As this takes place under inert
gas cover, rapid quenching and solidification happens. The white
layer results from this. Being a thermal process the surface is
affected by the heat involved in the process. The machining rate is a
major process parameter which affects [Link] the process
parameters are optimised such that the HAZ is of the least depth.
ADVANTAGES
➢Non contact process with no workpiece distortion
➢Minimum heat affected zone
➢Precise operation
➢High production rate
➢Process can be easily automated
➢Inaccessible areas for conventional method can be
processed
➢Hardness of the material does not affect the process
➢Multiple holes or welds possible in one exposure
➢Dissimilar material can be welded.
DISADVANTAGES
✓The cost is very high
✓Efficiency is extremely low (10-15%)
✓Low material rate
✓Machined holes are not round and straight
✓Limited to thin sheets
✓Stringent safety procedures are needed.
APPLICATIONS
➢Used in micromachining
➢Suitable for machining very small holes and complex profiles
in thin, hard materials
➢Sheet metal trimming, blanking, and resistor trimming
➢Metallic materials like steel, titanium, nickel, and their alloys
can be machined.
➢PVC, glass, ceramic, quartz, porcelain, asbestos,
polyethylene, polycarbonate, alumina, and graphite can be
machined.
 ELECTROCHEMICAL MACHINING
(ECM)
in ECM the principle of electrolysis is used to remove
metal from the workpiece. The principle of
electrolysis is based on Faraday’s law of electrolysis.
The weight of the substance produced during
electrolysis is directly proportional to the current
that is passed, the length of time of electrolysis, and
the equivalent weight of the material that is
deposited. In ECM work is an anode and the tool is a
cathode. Therefore work loses metal and it can be
plated onto the tool.
Schematic diagram of ECM
 Process Description
• A schematic view of the ECM method is shown in the
figure. In the DC supply circuit workpiece is the anode
and the tool is the cathode. The tool is of hollow
tubular type to provide passage for circulating
electrolyte between tool face and work as the power
supply is switched and the current starts flowing
through the circuit and electrons are removed from
the surface atom of the workpiece. These ions tend to
migrate through the hollow cutting tool. But before
these can get deposited on the cutting tool face. These
are swept away by rapidly flowing electrolytes
between the tool and the workpiece. The tool is fed
towards the workpiece automatically constant at
constant velocity to control the gap between the
electrode’s shape has the tool face has the desired
shape of the workpiece. The sides of the tool are
insulated to concentrate the metal removal action at
the bottom end of the tube.
Main subsytem
➢ Power Supply
➢ Electrolyte
➢ Tool
➢ The Control system
➢ The machine
POWER SUPPLY
Available in sizes up to 10,000 amp (some circuits are available up to 40,000amp)
Range of voltage 2 to 30 V DC
A constant voltage has to be maintained and high electric current density is
required.
ELECTROLYTE
➢ Essential for the electrolytic process
➢ It cools the cutting zone which becomes hot due to the flow of high current
➢ Neutral salts are used as electrolytesin place of highly corrosive
acids and alkalies
➢ The electrolyte solution is pumped between the tool/workpiece gap at
high pressure ranging from 0.70 to 300 Mpa.
TOOL
• Requirements of Tool For ECM :
✓ Good thermal conductivity
✓ Good stiffness
✓ Strong enough to withstand high pressures
✓ It should be easily machined
✓ High corrosion resistance
➢ Material for tool:Copper, brass ,aluminium , titanium and stainless steel
THE CONTROL SYSTEM
• Control Parameters include
▪ Voltage
▪ Inlet and outlet pressure of electrolyte
▪ Temperature of electrolyte

• The current is dependent on above parameters and feed rate

PROCESS
PARAMETERS
Parts made by ECM
ADVANTAGES
➢ ECM is a simple, fast, and versatile method
➢ The metal removal is entirely
➢ If proper electrolytes are used, there is no tool wear at all
➢ The process character does not depend at all upon the physical properties of the
metal (hardness, toughness, etc.)
➢ Surface finish can be extremely good
➢ No burrs are produced
➢ Fairly good tolerance can be obtained
➢ The process can be easily automated
DISADVANTAGES
✓ Large power consumption and the related problems
✓ Sharp internal corners cannot be achieved
✓ Post, machining cleaning is a must to reduce the corrosion of the workpiece
✓ Tool design is complicated and needs cut and try method to achieve the final shape
✓ Maintenance of higher tolerances requires complicated controls
 APPLICATIONS
❖Complex cavities in hardened or difficult-to-machine
materials
❖Blades and other components of gas turbine engine
❖Holes of circular or non-circular shapes as cooling
holes in gas turbine blades.
❖Sawing or slicing of bars or billets using rotating disc-
shaped cathodes.
ELECTRON BEAM MACHINING
(EBM)
• EBM is a metal removal process by a high velocity focused stream
of electrons. As the electrons strike the work piece with high
velocity, their kinetic energy is transformed into thermal energy
which melts and vaporizes the material. Due to pattern of
electrostatic field produced by grid cup, electrons are focused and
made to flow in the form of a converging beam through anode.
The electrons are accelerated while passing through the anode by
applying high voltage at anode. A magnetic deflection coil is used
to make electron beam circular and to focus electron beam at a
point (localized heating). The process is carried out in a vacuum
chamber to prevent electrons from colliding with molecules of
the atmospheric air and to prevent tungsten filament from
getting oxidizing with air.
• Just after the cathode, there is an annular bias grid. A high
negative bias is applied to this grid so that the electrons
generated by this cathode do not diverge and approach the next
element, the annular anode, in the form of a beam. The annular
anode now attracts the electron beam and gradually gets
accelerated. As they leave the anode section, the electrons may
achieve a velocity as high as half the velocity of light. The nature
of biasing just after the cathode controls the flow of electrons
and the biased grid is used as a switch to operate the electron
beam gun in pulsed mode.
• After the anode, the electron beam passes through a series of magnetic
lenses and apertures. The magnetic lenses shape the beam and try to
reduce the divergence. Apertures on the other hand allow only the
convergent electrons to pass and capture the divergent low energy
electrons from the fringes. This way, the aperture and the magnetic
lenses improve the quality of the electron beam. Then the electron
beam passes through the final section of the electromagnetic lens and
deflection coil. The electromagnetic lens focuses the electron beam to a
desired spot. Generally, in between the electron beam gun and the work
piece, which is also under vacuum, there would be a series of slotted
rotating discs. Such discs allow the electron beam to pass and machine
materials but helpfully prevent metal fumes and vapour generated
during machining to reach the gun. Work piece is mounted on a CNC
table so that holes of any shape can be machined using the CNC control.
• One of the major requirements of EBM operation of electron beam gun
is maintenance of desired vacuum. Maintenance of suitable vacuum is
essential so that electrons do not lose their energy and a significant life
of the cathode cartridge is obtained. Such vacuum is achieved and
maintained using a combination of rotary pump and diffusion pump.
• Process Parameters
➢ The accelerating voltage 30 KV to 175 kV
➢ The beam current 200 µA to 1A
➢ Pulse duration 50µs to 15 ms
➢ Energy per pulse > 100J/pulse
➢ Spot size 10 to 100 µm.
Mechanism of Material Removal
A concentrated beam of high velocity electrons is used by EBM to supply heat for
removing material from work peice. The mechanism of material removal here is
by melting and vaporisation. Material removal takes place mainly in the form of
vaporisation of the work piece material. However a small fraction of material is
removed in molten form
Material Removal Rate(MRR)
The Material removal rate increase with increase of beam current, Pulse duration,
Energy per pulse. Increasing the beam current directly increases the energy per
pulse. Similarly, increase in pulse duration also enhances energy per pulse.
Material removal rates are a function of the power applied and work piece
material.
Accuracy/Surface Finish
Increasing the beam current increases pulse energy and better
surface finish is observed compared to similar thermal processes
he melting temperature of material also effects the surface finish.
Beam current and diameter are two other parameters which
affects surface finish.
HAZ
The heat-affected zone developed by EBM is generally less than
0.25 mm deep. The heat- affected zone consists of a thin layer of
recast material, which may diminish the structural integrity of
work pieces, which are highly stressed. The amount of recast and
the depth of HAZ will be governed by the pulse duration, energy
per pulse, spot size and thickness of plate etc. Shorter pulse
durations will allow less interaction time for thermal effects to
reduce the HAZ. Heat-affected zones (HAZ) produced are not
desirable
Advantages of Electron Beam Machining
Very small holes can be machined in every type of material with high accuracy
Drilling holes with high depth/diameter ratios, greater than 100:1
Very high drilling rates – up to 4000 holes/sec
Drills any material - Hardness, thermal capacity, ductility, electrical conductivity or surface
properties etc, are not barriers. (steel, stainless steel, Ti and Ni super-alloys, aluminum, plastics,
ceramics can be machined successfully using electron beam).
EBM does not apply any cutting force on the work pieces. Thus very simple work holding is
required. This enables machining of fragile and brittle materials by EBM.
No mechanical distortion.
Limited thermal effects because pulse durations are short and Low HAZ effect
No tool wear
Best obtainable finish, compared to the other unconventional processes used to drill
Low operating cost
Disadvantages of Electron Beam Machining
Cost of equipment is high.
Rate of material removal is low.
Limited to 10mm material thickness
Vacuum requirements limit the size of work piece.
High level of operator skill required
Applications of Electron Beam Machining
• The various uses of EBM are:
• Aerospace industry for precision components.
• Medical device manufacturing for intricate parts.
• Microelectronics for microfabrication.
• Tool and die-making for complex moulds.
• Nuclear industry for specialised components.
• Automotive industry for engine parts.
• Research and development for prototyping.
• Jewellery and watchmaking for intricate designs.
• Military and defence for critical components.
• Space exploration for lightweight structures.
ION BEAM MACHINING (IBM)
• In IBM, a stream of charged atoms (ions) of an inert
gas, such as argon, is accelerated in a vacuum by
high energies and directed toward a solid work
piece. The beam removes atoms from the work
piece by transferring energy and momentum to
atoms on the surface of the object. When an atom
strikes a cluster of atoms on the work piece, it
dislodges between 0.1 and 10 atoms from the work
piece material.
Schematic diagram of IBM
• Ion beam machining (IBM) takes place in a vacuum chamber
using charged ions fired from an ion source toward the work
piece by means of an accelerating voltage. It is the process
of knocking out atoms from the work-piece surface by the
kinetic energy transfer from incident ion to the target
atoms. The process is, therefore, called ion etching, ion
milling, or ion polishing. The mechanism of material removal
in IBM differs from that of EBM. ION beam machining is the
process based on the sputtering off phenomenon. A heated
tungsten filament acts as the cathode, from which electrons
are accelerated by means of high voltage (1 kV) toward the
anode. During the passage of these electrons from the
cathode toward the anode, they interact with argon atoms
in the plasma source, to produce argon ions.
Ar +e−→Ar++2e
Mechanism of metal removal
• In IBM , ions are made to bobard the surface of work material , leading to ejection of
atoms from the surface. This process is called sputtering., which is basically a surface
finishing [Link] the process , the atoms are knocked out from the surface of the
workpeice by the high kinetic energy of the incident [Link] the enrgy of the
bombardment exceeds the binding energy of the atoms, material removal takes place at
energy level. Main parameters which affects the process are atomic weight of incident
ions, energy level of ions, ion beam power ,ion current and angle of incidence.
Material Removal Rate (MRR)
Sputtering yield (MRR) is a function of atomic number, binding energy, grain size, no. of
electrons shell, etc. of the work-piece material. The sputtering yield is dependent on the
atomic weight of the incident ion. ions. having high atomic number will yield high MRR.
Angle of incidence: sputtering yield increases gradually reaches a maximum at an ion
incidence angle of nearly 500 and after that decreases rapidly. As the ion incidence angle
increases, more atoms of the work-piece can be knocked out or sputtered away easily
from the surface of work-piece The specific sputter-machining rates increase linearly with
the amount of ion energy depth increases with increase in current density
Surface Finish
Success of the ion beam polishing depends crucially on the grain
size and initial morphology of the surface. Surface roughness
increases with increase in size of the grain structure, ion energy
and current density.
o An increase in angle of incidence increases the surface roughness,
o For low current density and energy, the smaller value of surface
roughness .Surface morphology has significant effect on the final
surface finish. Surface roughness increases for incident angle
from 00 to 500 then decreases rapidly.
Heat Affected Zone
Heat affected zone in IBM can be limited to1μm. The mechanism of
material removal in IBM is different from EDM or LBM. The
material removal is at atomic level. So the heat affected zone is
very negligible.
IBM parameters
1. Ions energy. The energy of ions is determined by the
accelerating potential of ion source electrodes and for ion
beams
2. Ion current. The ion current, ion current density determines
the sputtering rate.
3. Ion beam power. The ion beam power or power density
defines the material sputtering rate and IBF run productivity
4. Working Gas. The working gas determines the optical
component material sputtering yield,
5. Angle of incidence
6. Optical Motion pattern
Advantages of IBM
• 1. Low temperature processing reduces handling an stress problems.
• 2. No dimensional changes
• 3. Good adhesion of treated surface
• 4. Can improve corrosion, oxidation, wear, hardness, friction, fatigue
Disadvantages of IBM
1. Very shallow treatment (< 1 μm)
2. High cost
3. The surface can be weakened by radiation effects Ion beam machine
consists of
A plasma source generates ions
Extraction grid for removing the ions from the plasma
Specimen holding table
Applications of IBM:
1. It is applied mostly in micro-machining of electronic
components.
2. Typical materials that can be etched included glass,
alumina, quartz, crystal, silica, agates,porcelains, numerous
metals, cermets and oxides.
3. It is also being used to deposit materials such as platinum,
tungsten and silicon oxide insulators on other material
substrate.
4. Ion beam machining is an ideal process for nano-finishing of
high melting point hard and brittle materials such as
ceramics, semiconductors, diamond etc.
5. The processes can be applied to the manufacturing of ultra-
fine precision parts of electronic and mechanical devices.
6. Material removal takes place in the form of removal of
atom or molecule from the surface of the work-piece.
 PLASMA ARC MACHINING
• When a gas is heated to high temperature the
atoms(molecules) are split into free electrons and ions.
• The dynamic properties of this gas of free electrons and ions
are different from normal unionized gas
• So it can be considered as a “Fourth state of matter” called
PLASMA.
• In other words when the gas is heated to the temperature
of the order of 11000 to 28000 deg.c it becomes partially
ionized and it is known as PLASMA.
• Plasma is a mixture of free electrons, positively charged
ions, and neutral atoms.
• This plasma is used for metal removal process
• The plasma arc machining process is used for cutting alloy
steels, stainless steels, cast iron, copper, nickel, titanium and
aluminium, etc
Working Principle
In this process, the material is removed by directing a high-velocity jet of
high temperature (11000 to 28000 0 C ) ionized gas on the workpiece. This
high-temperature plasma jet melts the material
 CONSTRUCTION
• Workpiece: All materials which conduct electricity
• Cutting torch: The plasma arc cutting torch carries a tungsten electrode
fitted in a small chamber. The electrode is connected to the negative
terminal of a DC power supply. so it acts as a cathode.
• The positive terminal of the DC supply is connected to the nozzle, near
the bottom of the chamber. so it is an anode.
• The water is circulated around the torch. so the electrode and the
nozzle remain water-cooled.
• Stand off distance-It is the distance between the nozzle tip and
workpiece. When stand off distance increases, depth of penetration is
reduced. When it is low the plasma torch can be damaged by the metal
spatter. The optimum standoff distance depends on work piece
thickness is 6 to 10mm.
• A small passage is provided on one side of the torch for supplying gas
into the chamber.
• For stainless steel and nonferrous metals a mixture of nitrogen-
hydrogen or Argon –Hydrogen gas is used.
• For carbon and alloy steels, cast iron nitrogen, hydrogen or compressed
air is used
 WORKING
• When DC power is given to the circuit, a strong electric
arc is produced between the electrode(cathode) and
the nozzle (anode). A gas passed on to the chamber is
heated to a sufficiently high temperature of the order
of 11000 to 280000C by an electric arc produced. In this
high temperature, the gases are ionized and a large
amount of thermal energy is liberated. This high
temperature and high-velocity ionized gas (plasma) is
directed on the workpiece surface through the nozzle.
This plasma jet melts the metal of the workpiece and
the high-velocity gas stream effectively blows the
molten metal away.
• PAM is a roughing operation to an accuracy of around
1.4 mm with a corresponding surface finish.
• Accuracy on the width of slots and diameter of holes is
ordinarily from ± 4mm on 100mm to 150mm thick
plates.
 Process parameters
➢ Stand off distance: It refers to the distance between the nozzle & the workpiece. It is
inversely proportional to depth of penetration. Long distance gives narrow widths at the
bottom. Short distance damages the workpiece. Preferred range: 5 to 10mm . Varied
depending on thickness to be cut & material of the workpiece.
➢ Speed of cutting : It refers to the relative speed between the nozzle & the workpiece. High
cutting speed gives narrower bottom width. Slower cutting speed widens the bottom of
the kerf. At optimum speed, nearly perpendicular & parallel kerf surfaces can be obtained.
➢ Jet velocity: 500 m/s
➢ Specific energy: 100 W/(cm3 .min)
➢ Power Range: 2-200 Kw
➢ Voltage: 30-250 V (DC)
➢ Current: Upto 600 A
➢ Plasma gases :It flows through the spark & gets ionized.
Hydrogen has high heat capacity .Achieves best conditions for transfer of plasma arc heat.
Has smooth cutting action. Nitrogen is cheap but not smooth. Cutting speed is considerably
less. Nitrogen + Hydrogen most generally used. Sometimes argon is added.
➢ Selection depending on materials:
Stainless steel (t<50mm) Nitrogen – Hydrogen mixture
Aluminium & Magnesium Nitrogen,Nitrogen – Hydrogen mixture
Plain carbon steel Mixture containing Oxygen
ADVANTAGES
• It can be used to cut any metal
• The cutting rate is high
• It can cut plain carbon steel 4 times faster when compared to an
ordinary flame-cutting process
• It is used for rough turning of very difficult materials.
• Due to high-speed cutting the deformation of sheet metal is
reduced while the width of the cut is minimum and the surface
quality is high.
DISADVANTAGES
• It produces a tapered surface
• Protection of noise is necessary
• Equipment costs are high
• Protection of eyes is necessary for the operator and persons
working in nearby areas
• Oxidation and scale formation take place. so it requires shielding
• Work surface may undergo metallurgical changes
APPLICATIONS
• It is used for profile-cutting
• It is successfully used for milling and turning of
hard materials
• It can be used for stack cutting, shape cutting,
piercing, and underwater cutting
• Uniform thin film spraying of refractory materials
on different metals, plastics, and ceramics is also
done by plasma arcs
 ABRASIVE JET MACHINING (AJM)
• Abrasive jet machining is a mechanical energy
method of unconventional machining process.
• In AJM material is removed by mechanical erosion
of the workpiece material.
WORKING PRINCIPLE
In AJM, a high speed stream of abrasive particles
mixed with high pressure air or gas are injected
through a nozzle on the workpiece to be machined.
CONSTRUCTION
➢ WORKPEICE
AJM is used for machining hard and brittle materials , quartz, glass germanium , ceramics, mica ,
sapphire etc.
➢ ABRASIVES
Aluminium oxide is the preferred abrasive in the majority of applications .Silicon carbide abrasive is
also used in certain cases. The abrasive size is a dominant factor in AJM, and the best results have
been obtained with a particle size in the range of 10-50 µm. Sodium bicarbonate is used for extra
fine cleaning operations.
➢ Carrier gas
Air, nitrogen or carbon dioxide is generally used a carrier gas. Air must be filtered to remove water
and other contaminants. Commercially filled cylinder gases are usually satisfactory. The pressure
required is in the range of 2-8 kg /cm2. Higher pressure leads to high nozzle wear and lower pressure
results in reduced metal removal rate .The consumption of carrier gas is about 10000 cm3/min. The
velocity of the abrasive stream as it emerges from the nozzle is about 30 m/sec.
➢ NOZZLE
The abrasive particles are directed in to the work surface at high velocity through nozzles. Therefore
the material of nozzle is subjected to a great degree of abrasion wear and hence these are made of
hard material such as tungsten carbide or synthetic sapphire. Ife of nozzle tungsten carbide 12 to
20hrs and synthetic sapphire [Link] tip clearance 0.25 to 15 mm.
ADVANTAGES
• A high surface finish can be obtained.
• The depth of damage is low.
• It provides cool cutting action for glass and ceramics so it can machine delicate and heat -
sensitive material.
• The process is free from chatter and vibration as there is no contact between the tool and the
workpiece.
• In abrasive jet machining, the capital cost is low as it is easy to operate.
• hard materials(thin section) can be machined like germanium.
• intricate shape holes of brittle materials can be machined.
DISADVANTAGES
• Less capacity of the process due to low Material removal rate.
• While machining soft material abrasive gets embedded which will decrease its surface finish.
• The accuracy of cutting is disturbed by the tapering of the hole due to the unavoidable variation
of an abrasive jet.
• Accuracy is not good due to stray cutting.
• A dust collection system is a basic requirement to prevent atmospheric pollution and health
hazards so the extra cost will be there.
• Nozzle life is limited (300 hours).
• Abrasive powders cannot be reused as the sharp edges are worn and smaller particles can jam
the nozzle.
• A small standoff distance can damage the nozzle.
• The process accuracy is poor because of the flaring effect of the abrasive jet.
• Deep holes will have a taper.
APPLICATION
• It is used for abrading and frosting glass, ceramics, and refractoriness and it is
more economical as compared to etching or grinding.
• Cleaning of layering of metals like resistive coating.
• Deflashing small castings and trimming of parting lines of injection molded parts
and forgings.
• It is used for engraving registration numbers on toughened glass for car
windows.
• AJM is used for cutting thin fragile components like germanium, silicon, quartz,
mica, etc.
• abrasive jet machining is used effectively for micro module fabrication.
• Deburring etching, drilling, Cutting, and polishing of hard and brittle materials.
• It can be used for micromachining of brittle materials.
• It is used in fine drilling and aperture drilling for an electronic microscope.
• Used for cleaning metallic molds and cavities.
• Cleaning surfaces from corrosion, paints, glues, and other contaminants.
• Deburring of surgical needles and hydraulic valves, nylon, Teflon, and Delrin.
 Water jet machining and Abrasive
Water Jet Machining (WJM/AWJM)
Water jet cutting uses the beam of water exiting the orifice to
cut soft materials. The inlet water is
typically pressurized between 1300 – 4000 bars. Water jet
cutting is mostly used to cut lower strength
materials such as wood, plastics and aluminum. Removes
material through the erosion effects of a
high velocity, small diameter jet of water. Primarily used to
cut and slit porous nonmetals such as wood,
paper, leather and foam. It is most suitable process for very
thick, highly reflective or highly thermal-
conductive materials, as well as hard materials
Normal water is filtered and passed to the intensifier. The
intensifier acts as an amplifier as it converts the energy from
the low-pressure hydraulic fluid into ultra-high pressure
water. The hydraulic system provides fluid power to a
reciprocating piston in the intensifier center section to
amplify the water pressure. Using a control switch and a
valve water is pressurized to the nozzle. Nozzle renders the
pressurized water as a water jet at high velocity.
Schematic arrangement of WJM
Parameters control the results achieved with WJM
• It is found that water pressure, abrasive flow rate, orifice diameter, nozzle diameter and standoff
distance and feed rate have significant effect on the MRR and SR.
1. Pressure,
2. Nozzle dimensions
3. Focusing diameter,
4. Traverse rate
5. Standoff distance
6. Abrasive particle size and material
• Pressure, nozzle diameter and traverse rate are varied, depending upon the material and the
thickness being cut. The ability to cut faster (higher MRR) or to cut thicker materials is also
increased by accomplished by increasing the pressure, increasing the nozzle diameter or
decreasing the traverserate
• The general domain of parameters in entrained type AWJ machining system is given below:
• Orifice – Sapphires – 0.1 to 0.3 mm
• Focussing Tube – WC – 0.8 to 2.4 mm
• Pressure – 2500 to 4000 bar
• Abrasive –- #125 to #60
• Abrasive flow - 0.1 to 1.0 Kg/min
• Standoff distance – 1 to 2 mm
• Machine Impact Angle – 60o to 900
• Traverse Speed – 100 mm/min to 5 m/min
• Depth of Cut – 1 mm to 250 mm
MRR
1. Material removal rate increases with pressure and abrasive flow rate
2. The decreasing orifice diameter increases the velocity of water jet which results
in high MRR
3. The material removal rate is increased with increase in grain size and increase in
nozzle diameter.
• 4. Material removal rate increases initially with increase in stand-off-distance
and then decreases the material removal on further increases at a particular
pressure.
Surface roughness
• The surface finish of a work piece is directly related to the cutting force. The
higher the force the rougher will be the surface.
• Higher abrasive flow rate with higher standoff distance produces higher surface
roughness owing to larger and random energy distribution.
• The increase in the number of impacting particles improves surface finish.
• With an increase in the abrasive flow rate, the roughness is reduced.
• Higher abrasive flow rate produces greater kerf width,
• A large stand-off-distance results in the flaring up of the jet which leads to poor
accuracy.
• The amount of over size of the holes is greater at the entry than at exit resulting
in unavoidable conicity
Advantages
1. In most of the cases, no secondary finishing required
2. Machine thick plates
3. Water jet cutting does not produce any dust or particles that are
harmful if inhaled.
4. The kerfs width in water jet cutting is very small, and very little
material is wasted.
5. Low cutting forces on work pieces
6. Little to no cutting burr
7. Very good surface finish (125-250 microns)
8. No heat affected zone- Almost no heat generated on the part
9. Eliminates thermal distortion and structural change
DISADVANTAGES
• Taper is also a problem with water jet cutting in very thick materials
• Can cause dimensional inaccuracy.
• Cannot cut materials that degrades quickly with moisture
• Surface finish degrades at higher cut
• High capital cost and high noise levels during operation.
APPLICATION
• Water jet machining is used in various industries like mining, automotive and
aerospace for performing cutting, shaping and reaming operations.
• The materials which are commonly machined by water jet (WJM or AWJM) are
rubber, textiles, plastics, foam, leather, composites, tile, stone glass, food,
metals/ paper and much more.
• WJM is mostly used to cut soft and easy to machine materials such as thin
sheets and foils, wood, non-ferrous metallic alloys, textiles, honeycomb, plastics,
polymers, leathers, frozen, etc.
• AWJM is typically used to machine those materials which are hard and difficult
to machine. It is used to machine thick plates of steel, Al and other commercial
materials, reinforced plastics, metal matrix, and ceramic matrix composites,
layered composites, stones, glass, etc.
• Besides the Machining process, the high-pressure water jet is used in paint
removal, surgery, cleaning, peening to remove residual stress, etc.
• AWJM can also be used to perform drilling, pocket milling, turning and reaming.
 Comparative study about heat
affected zone in LBM, EBM, IBM, and
PAM processes.
• In LBM, a recast layer and HAZ range from 0.025 to 0.05 mm
which affects material properties. The HAZ is much narrower than
those of other thermal processes. The machining rate is a major
process parameter that affects HAZ. Usually, the process
parameters are such that the HAZ is of the least depth.
• In EBM also, the HAZ is very small and generally less than 0.25mm
depth. Here the layer of recast material and depth of heat
damage is very small. Only a thin layer of recast material and HAZ
is observed here.
• In IBM the HAZ is usually limited to 1 micron. As the material
removal is at atomic level, the heat affected zone is negligible as
compared to LBM or EBM.
• In PAM usually, the depth of HAZ is heat-affected around 0.75mm
and it may extend up to 5mm. Here the HAZ is present on the
bottom side of the cut. The depth of HAZ is the function of the
metal. Its thickness and cutting speed.