Liquid alloy electrode for no-wear micro electrical discharge machining

Huang, Ruining; Xiong, Xiaogang; Yi, Ying; Zhu, Erlei

doi:10.1007/s00170-019-04693-z

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 21 publications

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“…To address the wear-related problems associated with μEDM, Huang et al proposed a novel μEDM method that uses a liquid alloy as the machining electrode instead of traditional electrodes [ 17 , 28 ], in which the liquid metal consumed in the process can be compensated over time, and the capillary containing the liquid metal does not participate in the discharge; thus, its shape remains unchanged and solves the problem of electrode wear. Nevertheless, these references reported the experimental characterizations and demonstration of the process on the basis of a preliminary study and lacked an analysis of the liquid-metal electrode morphology, which will affect the machining accuracy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of a Liquid-Phase Electrode for Micro-Electro-Discharge Machining

Huang

Zhu

et al. 2020

Micromachines

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Micro-electro-discharge machining (μEDM) plays a significant role in miniaturization. Complex electrode manufacturing and a high wear ratio are bottlenecks for μEDM and seriously restrict the manufacturing of microcomponents. To solve the electrode problems in traditional EDM, a µEDM method using liquid metal as the machining electrode was developed. Briefly, a liquid-metal tip was suspended at the end of a capillary nozzle and used as the discharge electrode for sparking the workpiece and removing workpiece material. During discharge, the liquid electrode was continuously supplied to the nozzle to eliminate the effects of liquid consumption on the erosion process. The forming process of a liquid-metal electrode tip and the influence of an applied external pressure and electric field on the electrode shape were theoretically analyzed. The effects of external pressure and electric field on the material removal rate (MRR), liquid-metal consumption rate (LMCR), and groove width were experimentally analyzed. Simulation results showed that the external pressure and electric field had a large influence on the electrode shape. Experimental results showed that the geometry and shape of the liquid-metal electrode could be controlled and constrained; furthermore, liquid consumption could be well compensated, which was very suitable for µEDM.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%