Estimating the energy repartition in micro electrical discharge machining

Abstract

International audienceThis paper presents a new approach for the recording of the total quantity of energy exchanged during the micro electrical discharge machining (EDM) process. In particular, this approach allows for the estimation of the percentage of energy absorbed by the two electrodes (tool and workpiece) using a combination of theoretical models and experimental results, thanks to an advanced discharges measuring approach. An experimental campaign was executed on a Sarix SX200 micro-EDM machine with a tungsten carbide tool electrode. In particular, the process was analyzed for two different electrode shapes, a triangular and a rectangular based parallelepipeds, and two sets of machining parameters. After the execution of the experimental campaign it estimate the total amount of energy that occurred during the entire die sinking process. The energy effectively lost into the tool, into the workpiece and into the dielectric was estimated from the measurement of the volume of material actually removed both from the tool and from the workpiece. The preliminary results appears to fit those presented in the literature and the validity of several theoretical crater models was then assessed. The validation of the presented acquisition method could enable the use of information related to energy repartition in the simulation of the micro-EDM process

Microfeatures and microfabrication: current role of micro-electric discharge machining

“…Of the total energy supplied through the electrical circuit, most is lost to the dielectric; and experimentations on SS 304 using tungsten wire tool electrode coupled with electro-thermal modelling and simulation show that only 6.78% of the total pulse energy is transmitted to the cathode and 7.37% to the anode [63]. While in another experimentation, on aluminium workpiece using WC tool electrode, energy repartition to cathode is estimated to be around 1%-2% and to anode is estimated around 11%-18% [64]. Although the fundamentals of µ-EDM are same as macro EDM, the power density available at the workpiece in µ-EDM is about 30 times larger [65] as a consequence of shorter discharge durations.…”

Application of vibration singularity analysis, stochastic tool wear, and GPR-MOPSO hybrid algorithm to monitor and optimise power consumption in high-speed milling

“…Studies by Rigacci et al [1] shown that in the life of the machine tool operating costs account for more than 20% of PC. Bigot et al [2] concluded that in the US, the electricity used for machine tools is up to 80% produced from fossil fuels, this process will generate a significant amount of CO 2 . Aggarwal et al [3] showed that the PC in the machining process is greatly influenced by the cutting mode parameters.…”