Subsurface Damage in Polishing Process of Silicon Carbide Ceramic

Abstract

Subsurface damage (SSD) in the polishing process of silicon carbide (SiC) ceramic presents one of the most significant challenges for practical applications. In this study, the theoretical models of SSD depth are established on the basis of the material removal mechanism and indentation fracture mechanics in the SiC ceramic polishing process. In addition, the three-dimensional (3D) models of single grit polishing are also developed by using the finite element simulation; thereby, the dynamic effects of different process parameters on SSD depth are analyzed. The results demonstrate that the material removal was mainly in brittle mode when the cutting depth was larger than the critical depth of the brittle material. The SSD depth increased as the polishing depth and abrasive grain size increased, and decreased with respect to the increase in polishing speed. The experimental results suggested a good agreement with the theoretical simulation results in terms of SSD depth as a function of polishing depth, spindle speed, and abrasive grain size. This study provides a mechanistic insight into the dependence of SSD on key operational parameters in the polishing process of SiC ceramic.

Influence of Pulse Energy and Defocus Amount on the Mechanism and Surface Characteristics of Femtosecond Laser Polishing of SiC Ceramics

“…The traditional surface precision machining technologies of SiC ceramics include mechanical polishing [ 4 ], ELID grinding [ 5 ], plasma polishing [ 6 ], chemical mechanical polishing [ 7 ], magnetorheological polishing [ 8 ], etc. These processing methods have defects such as low processing quality, low processing efficiency, high cost and environmental pollution, which make it difficult to meet actual needs [ 9 ]. Laser polishing technology is non-contact polishing, which can not only effectively avoid the above defects but also has the advantages of high flexibility, easy combination with CNC technology to realize automation, a wide processing range and suitability for the surface polishing of complex parts such as planar, spherical and free-form surfaces, making it a surface precision machining method for hard and brittle materials with application prospects and development potential [ 10 ].…”

Damage Adaptive Titanium Alloy by In-Situ Elastic Gradual Mechanism

“…For example, surface mechanical grinding treatment to fabricate gradient nano-grained copper which can sustain tensile strain over 100% without cracking, and sintering treatment to fabricate an elastic gradient coating on brittle ceramics that can avoid surface crack nucleation during indentation loading [3]. Furthermore, composite materials with periodic hybrid structures have been fabricated to improve the toughness of brittle materials [4,5].…”

Development of a Novel Three Degrees-of-Freedom Rotary Vibration-Assisted Micropolishing System Based on Piezoelectric Actuation

“…It also has inherent properties such as low thermal distortion, toxicity, and potential cost relative to other conventional materials [1,2]. However, the processing of SiC into a practical surface topography presents a challenge resulting from its high hardness and brittleness [3,4]. To realize the ideal tolerance and surface quality, diamond abrasive processing of SiC through computer numerical control (CNC) polishing is one of the major technologies.…”