Grinding, lapping, polishing, EDM,
laser cut, water jest, etc.
Aluminum oxide, silicon carbide, diamond, and cubic boron
nitride (CBN) are four commonly used abrasive materials for the
surface of the grinding wheels.
Grinding is an abrasive machining process that uses
a grinding wheel as the cutting tool.
A basic overview of Outside Diameter
Cylindrical Grinding. The Curved Arrows refer to
direction of rotation
A basic overview of Internal Diameter
Cylindrical Grinding. The Curved Arrows refer to
direction of rotation
Surface grinding is used to
produce a smooth finish on flat
surfaces. It is a widely
used abrasive machining process
in which a spinning wheel
covered in rough particles
(grinding wheel) cuts chips of
metallic or nonmetallic substance
from a workpiece, making a face
of it flat or smooth. The typical
precision of a surface grinder
depends on the type and usage,
however ±0.002 mm (±0.0001 in)
should be achievable on most
surface grinders.
The machine consists of a table that traverses both longitudinally
and across the face of the wheel. The longitudinal feed is usually
powered by hydraulics, as may the cross feed, however any
mixture of hand, electrical or hydraulic may be used depending
on the ultimate usage of the machine (i.e., production,
workshop, cost). The grinding wheel rotates in the spindle head
and is also adjustable for height, by any of the methods
described previously. Modern surface grinders are semi-
automated, depth of cut and spark-out may be preset as to the
number of passes and, once set up, the machining process
requires very little operator intervention.
Depending on the workpiece material, the work is generally held
by the use of a magnetic chuck. This may be either an
electromagnetic chuck, or a manually operated, permanent
magnet type chuck; both types are shown in the first image.
Types of surface grinders:
Horizontal-spindle (peripheral) surface grinders
The periphery (flat edge) of the wheel is in contact with the workpiece,
producing the flat surface. Peripheral grinding is used in high-precision
work on simple flat surfaces; tapers or angled surfaces; slots and
profiles.
Vertical-spindle (wheel-face) grinders
The face of a wheel (cup, cylinder, disc, or segmental wheel) is used on
the flat surface. Wheel-face grinding is often used for fast material
removal, but some machines can accomplish high-precision work. The
workpiece is held on a reciprocating table, which can be varied
according to the task, or a rotary-table machine, with continuous or
indexed rotation. Indexing allows loading or unloading one station
while grinding operations are being performed on another.
Outside Diameter Cylindrical Grinding
Internal Diameter Cylindrical Grinding
A schematic of the centerless grinding process.
Centerless grinding process
Honing or to "Hone"is an abrasive machining process that
produces a precision surface on a metal workpiece by
scrubbing an abrasive stone against it along a controlled path.
Honing is primarily used to improve the geometric form of a
surface, but may also improve the surface texture.
Typical applications are the finishing of cylinders for internal
combustion engines, air bearing spindle and gears. There are
many types of hones but all consist of one or more abrasive
stones that are held under pressure against the surface they
are working on.
In terms of sharpening knives,
a honing steel does not actually
hone knives, but simply realigns
the metal along the edge.
Superabrasives and hone head for cylinders.
Lapping is a machinng process, in which two surfaces are
rubbed together with an abrasive between them, by hand
movement or by way of a machine.
Polishing is the process of creating a smooth and shiny
surface by rubbing it or using a chemical action, leaving a
surface with a significant specular reflection.
Electrical discharge machining (EDM), sometimes
colloquially also referred to as spark machining, spark
eroding, burning, die sinking, wire burning or wire
erosion, 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 liquide and
subject to an electric voltage. One of the electrodes is
called the tool-electrode, or simply the "tool" or
"electrode", while the other is called the workpiece-
electrode, or "workpiece".
Wire-cut EDM
The wire-cut type of machine arose in the 1960s for the purpose
of making tools (dies) from hardened steel. The tool electrode in
wire EDM is simply a wire. To avoid the erosion of material from
the wire causing it to break, the wire is wound between two
spools so that the active part of the wire is constantly changing.
The earliest (NC) machines were conversions of punched-tape
vertical milling machines. The first commercially available NC
machine built as a wire-cut EDM machine was manufactured in
the USSR in 1967. Machines that could optically follow lines on a
master drawing were developed in the 1960s at Andrew
Engineering Company for milling and grinding machines. Master
drawings were later produced by (CNC) plotters for greater
accuracy. A wire-cut EDM machine using the CNC drawing plotter
and optical line follower techniques was produced in 1974.
Dulebohn later used the same plotter CNC program to directly
control the EDM machine, and the first CNC EDM machine was
produced in 1976[
Wire cut
Die sinking: 1 Pulse generator (DC). 2 Workpiece. 3 Fixture. 4
dielectric fluid. 5 Pump. 6 Filter. 7 Tool holder. 8 Spark. 9 Tool
Small hole drilling Small hole drilling EDM machines.
Small hole drilling EDM is used in a variety of applications.
On wire-cut EDM machines, small hole drilling EDM is used to make a through
hole in a workpiece through which to thread the wire for the wire-cut EDM
operation. A separate EDM head specifically for small hole drilling is mounted on
a wire-cut machine and allows large hardened plates to have finished parts
eroded from them as needed and without pre-drilling.
Small hole EDM is used to drill rows of holes into the leading and trailing edges of
turbine blades used in jet engines. Gas flow through these small holes allows the
engines to use higher temperatures than otherwise possible. The high-
temperature, very hard, single crystal alloys employed in these blades makes
conventional machining of these holes with high aspect ratio extremely difficult, if
not impossible.
Small hole EDM is also used to create microscopic orifices for fuel system
components, spinnerets for synthetic fibers such as rayon, and other applications.
Small hole drilling
Turbine blade
Advantages of EDM include machining of:
• Complex shapes that would otherwise be difficult to produce
with conventional cutting tools.
• Extremely hard material to very close tolerances.
• Very small work pieces where conventional cutting tools may
damage the part from excess cutting tool pressure.
• There is no direct contact between tool and work piece.
Therefore, delicate sections and weak materials can be
machined without perceivable distortion.
• A good surface finish can be obtained; a very good surface may
be obtained by redundant finishing paths.
• Very fine holes can be attained.
• Tapered holes may be produced.
• Pipe or container internal contours and internal corners down
to R .001".
Disadvantages of EDM include:
• Difficulty finding expert machinists.
• The slow rate of material removal.
• Potential fire hazard associated with use of combustible oil based
dielectrics.
• The additional time and cost used for creating electrodes for
ram/sinker EDM.
• Reproducing sharp corners on the workpiece is difficult due to
electrode wear.
• Specific power consumption is very high.
• Power consumption is high.
• "Overcut" is formed.
• Excessive tool wear occurs during machining.
• Electrically non-conductive materials can be machined only with
specific set-up of the process.
Water jet A water jet cutter, also known as a water jet or waterjet, is an
industrial tool capable of cutting a wide variety of materials using
a very high-pressure jet of water, or a mixture of water and
an abrasive substance. The term abrasivejet refers specifically to
the use of a mixture of water and abrasive to cut hard materials
such as metal or granite, while the terms pure
waterjet and water-only cutting refer to waterjet cutting without
the use of added abrasives, often used for softer materials such
textiles, wood, rubber, leather, etc.
A diagram of a water jet cutter. #1:
high-pressure water inlet. #2: jewel
(ruby or diamond). #3: abrasive
(garnet). #4: mixing tube. #5:
guard. #6: cutting water jet. #7: cut
material
Typical abrasive cuts have a kerf in the range of 0.04 to
0.05 in (1.0–1.3 mm), but can be as narrow as 0.02
inches (0.51 mm). Non-abrasive cuts are normally
0.007 to 0.013 in (0.18–0.33 mm).
Water jets use approximately 0.5 to 1 US gal (1.9–3.8 l) per minute (depending on the cutting head's
orifice size) and the water can be recycled using a
closed-loop system.
High-pressure 400- 800 MPa
A 5-Axis Waterjet Cutting Head
Industrial abrasive water jet machine
Material
Thickness [mm]
Feed [mm/min]
Rubber
2
25.000
10
10.000
20
2.000
Plastic (PU)
2
20.000
5
8.000
10
3.000
Plastic (PTFE, PVC)
2
6.000
5
2.000
10
800
Wood
2
25.000
5
4.000
10
500
Sponge
10
25.000
100
5.000
Material
Thickness [mm]
Feed [mm/min]
Stainless steel
10
230
40
50
100
15
Titanium
4
270
10
55
100
20
Aluminium
10
270
40
55
100
20
Marble
10
800
40
150
120
40
Glass
10
600
40
120
120
33
Edge quality for water jet cut parts is defined with the quality
numbers Q1 through Q5. Lower numbers indicate rougher edge
finish; higher numbers are smoother. For thin materials, the
difference in cutting speed for Q1 could be as much as 3 times
faster than the speed for Q5. For thicker materials, Q1 could be
6 times faster than Q5. For example, 4 inches (100 mm) thick
aluminium Q5 would be 0.72 in/min (18 mm/min) and Q1
would be 4.2 in/min (110 mm/min), 5.8 times faster
Laser
The term "laser" originated as an acronym for "light
amplification by stimulated emission of radiation„ Laser cutting is a technology that uses a laser to cut materials,
and is typically used for industrial manufacturing applications, but
is also starting to be used by schools, small businesses, and
hobbyists. Laser cutting works by directing the output of a high-
power laser most commonly through optics. The laser optics
and CNC (computer numerical control) are used to direct the
material or the laser beam generated. A typical commercial laser
for cutting materials would involve a motion control system to
follow a CNC or G-code of the pattern to be cut onto the material.
The focused laser beam directed at the material, which then
either melts, burns, vaporizes away, or is blown away by a jet of
gas, leaving an edge with a high-quality surface finish. Industrial
laser cutters are used to cut flat-sheet material as well as
structural and piping materials.
Diagram of a laser cutter
Mirrors or fiber optics are typically used to direct the
coherent light to a lens, which focuses the light at the work
zone. The narrowest part of the focused beam is generally
less than 0.0125 inches (0.32 mm) in diameter. Depending
upon material thickness, kerf widths as small as 0.004
inches (0.10 mm) are possible.
There are three main types of lasers used in laser cutting.
The CO2 laser is suited for cutting, boring, and engraving.
The neodymium (Nd) and neodymium yttrium-aluminium-
garnet (Nd:YAG) lasers are identical in style and differ only
in application. Nd is used for boring and where high energy
but low repetition are required. The Nd:YAG laser is used
where very high power is needed and for boring and
engraving.
Both CO2 and Nd/Nd:YAG lasers can be used for welding.
Laser process is capable of holding quite close tolerances, often to
within 0.001 inch (0.025 mm). Part geometry and the mechanical
soundness of the machine have much to do with tolerance
capabilities. The typical surface finish resulting from laser beam
cutting may range from 125 to 250 micro-inches (0.003 mm to
0.006 mm).
The main disadvantage of laser cutting is the high power
consumption. Industrial laser efficiency may range from 5% to 45%.
The power consumption and efficiency of any particular laser will
vary depending on output power and operating parameters. This
will depend on type of laser and how well the laser is matched to
the work at hand. The amount of laser cutting power required,
known as heat input, for a particular job depends on the material
type, thickness, process (reactive/inert) used, and desired cutting
rate.
Amount of heat input required for various material at various
thicknesses using a CO2 laser [watts]
Material
Material thickness
0.51 mm 1.0 mm 2.0 mm 3.2 mm 6.4 mm
Stainless
steel 1000 1000 1000 1500 2500
Aluminium 1000 1000 1000 3800 10000
Mild steel − 400 − 500 −
Titanium 250 210 210 − -
Plywood − - − - 650
Boron/epoxy − - − 3000 −
Cutting rates using a CO2 laser [cm/second]
Workpiece
material
Material thickness
0.51 mm 1.0 mm 2.0 mm 3.2 mm 6.4 mm 13 mm
Stainless
steel 42.3 23.28 13.76 7.83 3.4 0.76
Aluminiu
m 33.87 14.82 6.35 4.23 1.69 1.27
Mild steel − 8.89 7.83 6.35 4.23 2.1
Titanium 12.7 12.7 4.23 3.4 2.5 1.7
Plywood − - − - 7.62 1.9
Boron /
epoxy − - − 2.5 2.5 1.1
There are two main types of lasers used in laser cutting.
The CO2 laser is suited for cutting, boring, and
engraving. The neodymium (Nd) and neodymium
yttrium-aluminium-garnet (Nd-YAG lasers are identical
in style and differ only in application. Nd is used for
boring and where high energy but low repetition are
required. The Nd-YAG laser is used where very high
power is needed and for boring and engraving. Both
CO2 and Nd/ Nd-YAG lasers can be used for welding.
Plasma cutting
Plasma cutting is a process that cuts through
electrically conductive materials by means of an
accelerated jet of hot plasma. Plasma is one of the
four fundamental states of matter. Plasma is ionized
electric arc. Plasma cutting is a process that is used to cut steel and
other metals of different thicknesses (or sometimes other
materials) using a plasma torch. In this process, a gas
(oxygen, air, inert and others dependant on material) is
blown at high speed out of a nozzle; at the same time an
electrical arc is formed through that gas from the nozzle to
the surface being cut, turning some of that gas to plasma.
The plasma is hot enough to melt the metal being cut and
moves fast enough to blow molten metal away from the cut.
Freehand cut of a thick steel plate
acetylene-oxygen cutting
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