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Traditional electric discharge machining (EDM) uses a Cu electrode to machine polycrystalline diamond (PCD), but it is hampered by poor machining efficiency and quality. During this study, a Cu-Ni electrode was used to machine PCD with graphene power suspended in the dielectric. The surface properties and machining mechanism of PCD under different parameters were analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. The surface quality and machining efficiency were analyzed by quantifying the surface roughness (SR) and material removal rate (MRR). The results demonstrated that the MRR of the Cu-Ni electrode increased by 65% when compared with that of Cu electrode at low discharge parameters, with the MRR of Cu-Ni electrode improved by a further 87% when graphene was added to the dielectric. Raman spectroscopy and XRD analysis showed that graphitization of PCD diamond processed by the Cu-Ni electrode was greater than that of the Cu electrode, and the addition of graphene further facilitated this process. The machining efficiency and quality of PCD in EDM can be greatly improved with the use of Cu-Ni electrode and graphene suspended in the dielectric. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The efficiency and accuracy of conventional electrical discharge machining (EDM) are limited by the stability of the voltage between the poles. To improve the efficiency of EDM, this paper presents a machining method that combines a self-developed 5-degree-of-freedom (5-DOF) controllable magnetic levitation actuator with a conventional EDM machine tool. The stability of the interpole voltage is improved by actuator microadjustment of the electrodes of the EDM machine tool. First, an EDM control system with local current feedback and decoupling control elements is designed based on the EDM servo drive principle to improve the response speed and positioning accuracy of the actuator. Second, the actuator is connected to the spindle of a conventional EDM machine tool, and machining experiments are carried out. The experimental results show that the EDM machine tool connected to the actuator can control the electrode position more quickly, adjust the discharge state quickly, and increase the number of discharges per unit time. The average machining speed increases from 1.108 to 3.925 µm/s, which is 3.54 times as fast as conventional EDM. Finally, complex shape machining experiments are carried out, and the machining results showed that by adjusting the target value of the radial direction of the actuator, the various trajectories of the electrode can be controlled to depict arbitrary shapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inconel 625 superalloy and stainless steel 304 are known for their significant corrosion resistance along with their high hardness and strength. Therefore, they are used in a wide range of industries, including oil and gas and nuclear. Electrical discharge machining is among the most widely used processes for machining of these metals. However, this process has limitations, such as low material removal efficiency, high surface roughness, and the formation of a recast layer. Therefore, in this study, the effective parameters on increasing the material removal efficiency and reducing recast layer thickness are investigated. These parameters include the dielectric fluid, electrode material, discharge current, and pulse duration. After performing the test matrix, the effect of each of the input parameters on the material removal rate, surface roughness, and thickness of the recast layer is evaluated using the ANOVA method. The results of this analysis showed that the type of dielectric fluid and the presence of silver oxide nanoparticles have a significant effect on output variables. When using sunflower oil fluid containing nanoparticles and the silver electrode, the recast layer and surface roughness are reduced, while the average material removal rate increases by 40% compared to the traditional mode. Also, due to the biodegradability of deionized water and sunflower oil fluids, the environmental sustainability of the process in this study is increased and while increasing productivity, it leads to the sustainable development of the EDM process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The discharge current waveform affects the processing characteristics and surface integrity by affecting the process of energy input. At present, although the rectangular current waveform is widely used in electrical discharge machining (EDM), there is not enough evidence to prove that it is the most suitable. Therefore, in this study, the influence of the discharge current waveforms on processing characteristics and surface integrity was investigated and compared under similar pulse energy. Three types of discharge current waveforms including rectangular (Rec), triangular (Tri), and trapezoidal (Tra) are used for processing. The material removal amount, surface topography, roughness, phase compositions, white layer thickness, and residual stress were investigated and analyzed. The results showed that Tri could remove the most materials per pulse-on duration, followed by Tra. Compared with Rec, the size of craters and debris on the sample surface produced by the Tri and Tra was larger. The surface roughness and residual stress of samples processed by Tri were the highest. When the discharge current waveform was constant, XRD spectra of samples fabricated by EDM under different pulse energy were almost the same. Compared with Rec, the diffraction peaks of samples produced by Tri and Tra were reduced. When the pulse energy was low, the white layer of samples processed by Rec was thinner than that processed by Tri. This phenomenon was reversed when the pulse energy was high. The white layer thickness of the sample fabricated by Tra was between the samples processed by Rec and Tri regardless of pulse energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The influences of electrical and non-electrical parameters on surface integrity during the EDM process have been widely researched in past years. However, the effect of the energy input process at the same discharge energy is seldom reported. To select more suitable processing parameters according to the processing requirements, we have studied the influence of the energy input process on processing characteristics and surface properties. Two different energy input modes (high discharge current with short pule-on time (HIST) and low discharge current with long pule-on time (LILT)) are used. When the discharge energy is the same, the HIST mode has a higher material removal amount, while the sample produced by the LILT mode presents a lower surface roughness and residual stress. More surface cracks are detected on the samples processed by the LILT mode, and their dimensions in terms of length and width are greater than that of the HIST mode. The microstructure of the EDM surface is composed of α-Fe, γ-Fe, and cementite. When the discharge energy is higher than 0.24 mJ, the intensities of diffraction peaks γ-Fe and cementite on the EDM workpiece surface produced by the HIST mode are higher. The white layer thickness is related to the discharge energy and its input process. When the discharge energy is lower than 0.51 mJ, the white layer is thinner under the LILT mode. However, the white layer of the EDM sample fabricated by the HIST mode is thinner when the discharge energy is higher than 0.51 mJ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To meet the increasing demand for wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) under extreme conditions such as ultra-high thickness cutting, micro-wire cutting, micro-energy finishing, and ceramic composites machining, a concept of multichannel discharge WEDM under semiconductor characteristics was proposed. The essence of this conception is that under these extreme machining conditions, the electrode wire or workpiece — or even both of the two electrodes — cannot be treated as electrically conductive materials of the conventional WEDM due to their high electrical resistance. However, they can exhibit electrical discharge behavior like semiconductors, which is defined as semiconductor characteristics. The conventional WEDM theory and related technologies cannot be applied to extreme WEDM because conventional WEDM only has one discharge channel per pulse, whereas multiple discharge channels can be generated by each pulse in extreme WEDM. Therefore, a suitable theory needs to be developed for extreme WEDM under semiconductor characteristics. Based on the multichannel discharge behavior of semiconductors, experiments were conducted on high-efficiency machining with multichannel discharge by stacking several workpieces as an assembly with semiconductor characteristics. It was proved that the multichannel discharge WEDM is capable of achieving high machining efficiency, as well as enhanced surface quality and lower wear of electrode wire. The proposed multichannel discharge WEDM sets up the foundation for the establishment of the theoretical system of EDM under semiconductor characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]