Effect of a Rapid Tooling Technique in a 3D Printed Part for Developing an EDM Electrode

Abstract

The role of rapid tooling (RT) in additive manufacturing (AM) seems essential in improving and spreading out the vista of manufacturing proficiency. In this article, attempts were made to discover the feasibility and the accomplishments of the RT electrode in the field of electro-discharge machining (EDM). Fused deposition modeling (FDM) is one of the AM processes adopted to fabricate the EDM electrode prototype by coating with copper. The copper is deposited on FDM-built ABS plastic component for about 1 mm through thick electroplating. The copper-coated FDM (CCF) and solid copper (SC) electrodes are used to conduct experiments on a die-sinking EDM machine using tool alloy steel as a workpiece. The CCF polymer electrode can be efficiently used in EDM operations as the build time of any complex shape was substantially reduced. However, the material removal rate (MRR) is far less than that of the SC electrode. It is recommended that the CCF electrode is used for semifinishing and finishing operations in which MRR happens to be less. However, CCF can get spoiled as high temperatures are generated on the machining tool, and the plastic core hardly sustains such high temperatures.

Performance Evaluation of Electrode Fabricated by using FDM in Die-Sinking EDM

“…Hence, it was evident that PETG was a suitable electrode core material besides ABS because the thermal decomposition of PETG did not happen during the machining process. In addition, this positive outcome dismissed the claim made by Alamro et al, [13] that the FDM electrode was unsuitable for roughing machining operation due to extreme sparking temperature which could melt the electrode core.…”

Evaluation of the Performance of Atomic Diffusion Additive Manufacturing Electrodes in Electrical Discharge Machining

“…In the second stage, the pattern must be coated with another material of sufficiently high electrical conductivity and thickness to be suitable for EDM [ 12 ]. Alamro et al [ 13 ] performed a two-stage process starting with an ABS AM pattern by MEX (generally known as the FDM process) coated with a 1 mm layer of copper after an electroplating process. This plating was performed after making the ABS electrically conductive using conductive silver paint and introducing the pattern into an electrolytic bath of CuSO 4 + H 2 SO 4 , under a current density.…”