3D-Printed MWF Nozzles for Improved Energy Efficiency and Performance During Grinding

Abstract

Particularly during grinding of metal workpieces, a high energy consumption is required during the main process times, so that the resulting energy costs represent a significant amount of the total operating costs of the machine tool. In this context, the supply of metal working fluids (MWF) during the grinding process is often associated with a high energy consumption, but the MWF supply strategy (MWF flow rate, MWF nozzle, control and dimensioning of the MWF supply pumps) can significantly influence the energy efficiency of such processes. In the scope of this work, additive manufacturing was used to produce fluid supply nozzles adapted to the respective grinding process. In this work, it was shown that by using a flow-optimized nozzle the required power of the MWF supply pump can be significantly reduced, allowing to make the grinding process more efficient in terms of the energy required.