Electro-discharge machining (EDM) is mostly used for machining difficult-to-cut materials which are difficult to machine by conventional machining processes. In recent years, EDM is also used for surface modification. This work aims to investigate the phenomenon of surface modification of tool steel Calmax (Uddeholm) by EDM process using Cu-ZrO2 powder metallurgy green compact electrode. Results show that the higher Material Transfer Rate of 46.5 mgr/min is achieved on the combination of Ip=9A and Ton=25 μs. The effect of peak current and pulse duration on the material transfer rate and surface roughness (Ra and Rz) was investigated. Machined surfaces were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is a non-conventional machining process, which is mostly used for machining of difficult-to-cut materials. These materials are often used in engineering applications that require improved surface properties; thus, surface modification is desirable in these cases. In the recent past, it has been observed that EDM is an alternative surface modification process due to migration of material from the electrode to the workpiece surface. Surface modification can be done with powder metallurgy (P/M) electrode as tool. The aim of this work is to examine the surface modification of the tool steel Calmax (Uddeholm) by EDM process using Cu-30 wt.% ZrO2 P/M green compact electrode. The influence of peak current (Ip) and pulse-on (Ton) on the Material Transfer Rate (MTR) and Surface Roughness (SR) was investigated and the surface characteristics were also evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The experimental results confirm the material migration from the electrode to the machined surface and show that the higher MTR of 46.5 mgr/min is achieved on the combination of Ip = 9 A and Ton = 25 μs and the Ra varies from 3.72 μm to 7.12 μm.

Electrical discharge machining is one of the most important non-conventional machining processes for removing material from electrically conductive materials by the use of controlled electric discharges. EDM is a non-contact machining process, therefore, is free from mechanical stresses. This paper investigates the machining Al7075-T6 alloy by EDM using a copper electrode. Al7075-T6 alloy was selected, because of its growing use in a lot of engineering applications. The effect of electrical parameters, peak current and pulse-on time, on the surface integrity, was studied. Area surface roughness parameters (arithmetical mean height, Sa, and maximum height, Sz) were measured on all samples and 3D surface characterization has been carried out with confocal laser scanning microscopy. The experimental results showed that the surface roughness is mainly affected by the pulse-on time.

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