Effect of tool rotation on the fabrication of micro-tool by electrochemical micromachining

Abstract

Electrochemical micromachining (EMM) uses anodic dissolution in the range of microns to remove material. Complex shapes that are difficult to machine on hard materials can be fabricated easily with the help of EMM without any stresses on the workpiece surface and no tool wear. Fabrication of microfeatures on microdevices is a critical issue in modern technologies. For the fabrication of microfeatures, precise micro-tools have to be fabricated. In this present study, EMM milling is used for the fabrication of micro-tools. For this, an EMM setup has been designed. Tungsten carbide tools with an initial diameter of 520 µm have been selected and are electrochemically machined to reduce their diameter. The tool and workpiece are connected as anode and cathode, respectively. The electrolyte solution used for this investigation is sodium nitrate. A comparative analysis of the effect of tool rotation over both machining accuracy and surface finish has been performed.

Numerical simulation and experimental study on electrochemical milling of cemented carbide

“…Tool cathode plays an important role in improving the machining accuracy of electrochemical milling, a smooth surface is observed for the micro-tool fabricated by rotating the tool inside the workpiece’s hole, as proper flushing of debris particles takes place due to tool rotation. 11 It is mainly composed of an emery coating adhered to a standard-size cylindrical metal rod. When the full-edge electrochemical milling process is performed, the whole tool cathode edge cuts into cemented carbide, as shown in Figure 1.…”

Electrochemical Dissolution of WC-Co Micro-Tool in Micro-WECM Using an Eco-Friendly Citric Acid Mixed NaNO3 Electrolyte

“…studied the effect of tool rotation on the fabrication of micro-tool by micro-ECM. 20 They concluded that a better dissolution with less stray current effect is obtained as tool rotation improves flushing of debris particles. Again, the same author (2021) used Multiphysics simulation to study the current density variation in the IEG during the micro-tool fabrication process through micro-ECM.…”