Micro Electrical Discharge Machining(μEDM):Holes Drilling and Characterization of the Process Parameters

μEDM(micro-electrical discharge machining)is a process for machining conductive materials without mechanical contact;it is particularly suitable for machining hard materials.The principle consists in creating electrical discharges between a micro-tool and a workpiece,both of which are immersed in a dielectric.It is a complementary process to mechanical,laser,micro-machining techniques,and even to techniques derived from silicon microtechnology(RIE,DRIE,LIGA).However,the resolution ofμEDM is limited;it depends on several electrical and physical parameters.The goal of this paper is to characterize the holes obtained by drilling usingμEDM with different micro-tool diameters(Φ=250μm;Φ=80μm;Φ=40μm;Φ=20μm)for an experimental time of t=2 h.The results obtained let us conclude that a large diameter micro-tool(Φ=250μm)leads to removing a larger amount of material(43×10^(5)μm^(3))than small diameters:Φ=80μm;Φ=40μm;Φ=20μm where the removed volume is equal to 2.6×10^(5)μm^(3);105μm^(3);0.4×10^(5)μm^(3),respectively.The electrode-tool diameter influences the maximum depth of the holes;a diameter ofΦ=250μm generates a hole where the maximum depth is 170μm while small diameters:Φ=80μm;Φ=40μm;Φ=20μm provide holes with a depth of 82μm;51μm;50μm respectively.Through these experiments,we can also conclude that the lateral gap of the holes is almost constant.It is about 40μm whatever the diameter.

Macro-meso fracture evolution mechanism of hollow cylindrical granite with different hole diameters under conventional triaxial compression

In order to study and analyze the stability of engineering rock mass under non-uniform triaxial stress and obtain the evolution mechanism of the whole process of fracture,a series of conventional triaxial compression tests and three-dimensional numerical simulation tests were carried out on hollow granite specimens with different diameters.The bearing capacity of hollow cylindrical specimen is analyzed based on elasticity.The results show that:1)Under low confining pressure,the tensile strain near the hole of the hollow cylindrical specimen is obvious,and the specimen deformation near the hole is significant.At the initial stage of loading,the compressive stress and compressive strain of the specimen are widely distributed.With the progress of loading,the number of microelements subjected to tensile strain gradually increases,and even spreads throughout the specimen;2)Under conventional triaxial compression,the cracking position of hollow cylinder specimens is concentrated in the upper and lower parts,and the final fracture mode is generally compressive shear failure.The final fracture mode of complete specimen is generally tensile fracture.Under high confining pressure,the tensile cracks of the sample are concentrated in the upper and lower parts and are not connected,while the cracks of the upper and lower parts of the intact sample will expand and connect to form a fracture surface;3)In addition,the tensile crack widths of intact and hollow cylindrical specimens under low confining pressure are larger than those under high confining pressure.

Experimental study on the improvement of spray characteristics of aero-engines using gliding arc plasma

A gliding arc plasma fuel atomization actuator suitable for aeroengines was designed,and a gliding arc plasma fuel spray experimental platform was built to address the fuel atomization problem in aeroengine combustion chambers.The spray characteristics for different airflows,fuel flows,and discharge voltages were analyzed using laser particle size analysis.The research shows that the fuel atomization effect is improved from the increased airflow.The decreased fuel flow not only reduces the injection pressure of the fuel but also changes the discharge mode of the gliding arc,which affects reductions in the discharge power and inhibits fuel atomization.Gliding arc discharges accelerate the breaking,atomization,and evaporation of fuel droplets while reducing the particle size,which increases the proportion of small droplets.Compared with the working conditions of plasma-assisted atomization without the gliding arc,the D0.5,D0.9,and average particle size of the fuel droplets are reduced by 4.7%,6.5%,and 4.1%,respectively,when the modulation voltage of the gliding arc power supply is 200 V.

Strengthening leaching effect of Carlin-type gold via high-voltage pulsed discharge pretreatment

A high-voltage pulsed discharge(HVPD)pretreatment was used to strengthen the leaching effect of Carlin-type gold ore containing arsenic.Optimal results of the pretreatment experiments were obtained at the following operating conditions:a spherical gap spacing of 20 mm,pulse number of 100,and voltage of 30 kV.The leaching rate of gold was increased by 15.65%via the HVPD pretreatment.The mass fraction of–0.5+0.35 mm and–0.35+0.1 mm was increased by 10.97%and 6.83%compared to the untreated samples,respectively,and the Au grade of–0.1 mm was increased by 22.84%.However,the superiority of the HVPD pretreatment would be weakened by prolonged grinding time.Scanning electron microscopy results indicated that the pretreated products presented as a melting state and then condensation,accompanying by some pore formation.More micro-cracks were generated at the interface of the ore and the original crack were expended via pulsed discharge pretreatment,with the contact area between the leaching reagent and ore increased,the leaching reaction rate enhanced and the leaching effect strengthened.

Effect of Two Phase Mixtures on the Selection of the Discharge Path

This paper investigates the development,the breakdown process,and the discharge path selection of the lightning discharges in two-phase mixtures(TPMs).13 kinds of solid-gas mixtures and 3 kinds of liquid-gas mixtures are employed to study effect of two phase mixtures on the selection of the discharge path under lightning impulses.Grain size effects are shown upon these experimental results.When the diameter of solid or liquid grains is less than about 10 μm,the discharge path does not select TPM but air.And the discharge path selects TPM when the diameter is greater than about 100 μm.And when the diameter is between about 10 μm and 100 μm,the discharge path selects TPM under negative lightning impulses,but it has a greater selection of air than TPMs under positive lightning impulses.Volume fraction and permittivity of solid/liquid can also influence the selection of the discharge path.

Discharge Coefficient of 3-in-1 Hole with Various Inclination Angle and Hole Pitch

Discharge coefficients of 3-in-1 hole of three inclination angles and three spacing between holes are presented which described the discharge behavior of a row of holes. The inlet and outlet of the 3-in-1 hole both have a 15° lateral expansion. The flow conditions considered are mainstream turbulence intensities and density ratios of secondary flow to mainstream. The momentum flux ratios varied in the range from 1 to 4. The comparison is made of the discharge coefficients of three shaped holes to find an optimal hole with low flow loss. The results show that the discharge coefficients of 3-in- 1 hole are highest in three shaped holes and therefore this article is focused on the measurements of discharge coefficients of 3-in-1 hole for various geometries and aerodynamic parameters. The measured results of 3-in-1 hole indicate that turbulence intensities, density ratios and momentum flux ratios have weak influence on discharge coefficients for inclination angle of 20°. The high turbulence intensity yields the small discharge coefficients for inclination angle of 45° and 90°. The increased both momentum flux ratios and density ratios lead to the increased discharge coefficients for inclination angle of 45° and 90°. The increased inclination angle causes the rapidly increased discharge coefficients. There is a weak dependence of discharge coefficients on hole pitches.

Partial Discharge Simulations Used for the Design of a Non-Intrusive Cable Condition Monitoring Technique

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of PD （partial discharge） activity within medium voltage XLPE （cross-linked polyethylene） cables. The effect of partial discharge was studied by means of a number of simulations. The simulations were based on the well-known three capacitor model for partial discharge. An equivalent circuit was derived for partial discharge due to a single void in the insulation material of a power cable. The results obtained from the simulations will form the basis of the design proses of a non-intrusive condition monitoring technique. The technique is based on the classification of discharge activity according to five levels of PD. Future work will include the improvement of the simulation model by investigating the high frequency model of a power cable as well as the statistical nature of PD activity. This will improve the accuracy of the simulation results when compared to actual measurements. The work discussed in this paper will be used to construct and calibrate a practical model which will make use of PD measurements for non-intrusive condition monitoring of medium voltage electrical cables.

Statistical Description of Debris Particle Size Distribution in Electrical Discharge Machining

Gap debris as discharge product is closely related to machining process in electrical discharge machining（EDM）. A lot of recent researches have focused on the relationship among debris size, surfaces texture, remove rate, and machining stability. The study on statistical distribution of debris size contributes to the research, but it is still superficial currently. In order to obtain the distribution law of the debris particle size, laser particle size analyzer（LPSA） combined with scanning electron microscope（SEM） is used to analyze the EDM debris size. Firstly, the heating dried method is applied to obtain the debris particles. Secondly, the measuring range of LPSA is determined as 0.5–100 μm by SEM observation, and the frequency distribution histogram and the cumulative frequency distribution scattergram of debris size are obtained by using LPSA. Thirdly, according to the distribution characteristic of the frequency distribution histogram, the statistical distribution functions of lognormal, exponentially modified Gaussian（EMG）, Gamma and Weibull are chosen to achieve curve fitting of the histogram. At last, the distribute law of the debris size is obtained by fitting results. Experiments with different discharge parameters are carried out on an EDM machine designed by the authors themselves, and the machining conditions are tool electrode of red-copper material, workpiece of ANSI 1045 material and working fluid of de-ionized water. The experimental results indicate that the debris sizes of all experiment sample truly obey the Weibull distribution. The obtained distribution law is significantly important for all the models established based on the debris particle size.

Selectivity of escape-hole size in tube traps for white-spotted conger Conger myriaster

Comparative fishing experiments were carried out in 2010 using tube traps with five hole diameters (8, 15, 18, 20 and 22 mm) to establish the size selectivity of escape holes for white-spotted conger. Selectivity and split parameters of the SELECT model were calculated using the estimated-split and equal-spilt model. From likelihood ratio tests and AIC (Akaike's Information Criterion) values, the estimated-split model was selected as the best-fit model. Size selectivity of escape holes in the tube traps was expressed as a logistic curve, similar to mesh selectivity. The 50% selection length of white-spotted conger in the estimated-split model was 28.26, 33.35, 39.31 and 47.30 cm for escape-hole diameters of 15, 18, 20 and 22 mm, respectively. The optimum escape-hole size is discussed with respect to management of the white-spotted conger fishery. The results indicate that tube traps with escape holes of 18 mm in diameter would benefit this fishery.

Micro electrical discharge machining of small hole in TC4 alloy

Aiming at machining deeply small holes in TC4 alloy,a series of experiments were carried out on a self-developed multi-axis micro electrical discharge machining(micro-EDM)machine tool.To improve machining efficiency and decrease relative wear of electrode in machining deeply small hole in TC4 alloy,many factors in micro-EDM,such as polarity,electrical parameters and supplying ways of working fluid were studied.Experimental results show that positive polarity machining is far superior to negative polarity machining;it is more optimal when open-circuit voltage,pulse width and pulse interval are 130 V,5μs and 15μs respectively on the self developed multi-axis micro-EDM machine tool;when flushing method is applied in micro-EDM,the machining efficiency is higher and relative wear of electrode is smaller.

Comparative study on discharge conditions in micro-hole electrical discharge machining of tungsten carbide (WC-Co) material

WC-Co is used widely in die and mold industries due to its unique combination of hardness, strength and wear-resistance. For machining difficult-to-cut materials, such as tungsten carbide, micro-electrical discharge machining(EDM) is one of the most effective methods for making holes because the hardness is not a dominant parameter in EDM. This paper describes the characteristics of the discharge conditions for micro-hole EDM of tungsten carbide with a WC grain size of 0.5 μm and Co content of 12%. The EDM process was conducted by varying the condenser and resistance values. A R-C discharge EDM device using arc erosion for micro-hole machining was suggested. Furthermore, the characteristics of the developed micro-EDM were analyzed in terms of the electro-optical observation using an oscilloscope and field emission scanning electron microscope.

Effects of Macroparticle Sizes on Two-phase Mixture Discharge Under DC Voltage

随着放电等离子体在各个领域应用的不断扩大，两相体放电问题越来越重要，需要解决的基础问题之一即是两相体中放电发生、发展的特点和规律及影响因素。采用21种不同的介质材料研究直流电压下两相体放电的效应，由实验结果可知介质的介电常数对放电路径基本无影响，而介质颗粒的粒径大小对两相体放电路径的选择起决定作用，即粒径效应。此外，对颗粒介电常数、电场畸变、光电离作用和颗粒荷电等几个方面进行研究，可知两相体放电的粒径效应与颗粒粒径大小紧密相关。

Rapid manufacturing of SiC molds with micro-sized holes using abrasive water jet

Silicon carbide (SiC) is highly wear resistant with good mechanical properties, including high temperature strength, excellent chemical resistance, and high thermal conductivity and thermal shock resistance. SiC molds, which can be produced with diverse microstructural features, are now widely used in glass molding owing to their excellent characteristics, and also have potential applicability in IT industries. SiC molds are traditionally fabricated by silicon micromachining or dicing. The fabrication cost of silicon micromachining is very high, however, because several expensive masks are needed. Furthermore, the fabrication time is very long. Meanwhile, it is difficult to make micro-patterned molds with arbitrary shapes using dicing saws. Abrasive water jet (AWJ) is widely applied to cut and drill very brittle, soft and fibrous materials. It offers high energy density, the absence of a heat affected zone(HAZ), high performance, and an environment friendly process. In spite of these advantages, micro-hole drilling via conventional AWJ processing suffers from notable shortcomings. We proposed a new abrasive supplying method of AWJ. The proposed method reduces frosting phenomena, and provides micro-machining of AWJ. The characteristics of a hole machined was investigated by the proposed AWJ process according to the ratio of water and abrasives. With the optimal experimental conditions, 3×3 array SiC molds with the diameter of 700 μm and depth of 900 μm were successfully manufactured.

Simulation of Electrical Discharge Initiated by a Nanometer-Sized Probe in Atmospheric Conditions

In this paper, a two-dimensional nanometer scale tip-plate discharge model has been employed to study nanoscale electrical discharge in atmospheric conditions. The field strength dis- tributions in a nanometer scale tip-to-plate electrode arrangement were calculated using the finite element analysis （FEA） method, and the influences of applied voltage amplitude and frequency as well as gas gap distance on the variation of effective discharge range （EDR） on the plate were also investigated and discussed. The simulation results show that the probe with a wide tip will cause a larger effective discharge range on the plate; the field strength in the gap is notably higher than that induced by the sharp tip probe; the effective discharge range will increase linearly with the rise of excitation voltage, and decrease nonlinearly with the rise of gap length. In addition, probe dimension, especially the width/height ratio, affects the effective discharge range in different manners. With the width/height ratio rising from 1 ： 1 to 1 ： 10, the effective discharge range will maintain stable when the excitation voltage is around 50 V. This will increase when the excitation voltage gets higher and decrease as the excitation voltage gets lower. Fhrthermore, when the gap length is 5 nm and the excitation voltage is below 20 V, the diameter of EDR in our simulation is about 150 nm, which is consistent with the experiment results reported by other research groups. Our work provides a preliminary understanding of nanometer scale discharges and establishes a predictive structure-behavior relationship.

Electro-hydrodynamic Simulation of Wire-plate Corona Discharge

To simulate the electro-hydrodynamics of wire-plate corona discharge at different voltages accurately,a simulation method,which relates the definite radius and initial velocity of a jet source to the amplitude of discharge voltage,is developed.Firstly,a model of the electro-hydrodynamics is established by the Matlab software using the governing equations discretized with the finite difference method.Secondly,the electric field strength and current density are simulated and the radius and initial velocity of a jet source at different voltages are determined.Finally,the discharge electro-hydrodynamics is simulated using the determined boundary conditions.Compared with using a conventional method,using the proposed method can obtain a wind velocity with smaller errors from the experimental and theoretical wind velocities: the errors between simulated wind velocity and its theoretical counter part at 45 kV and 50 kV decrease from 9% and 6.25% to 1.7% and 1.56%,respectively.Thus,the proposed method is feasible for the existing discharge models.

Material properties and machining performance of hybrid Ti_2AlN bulk material for micro electrical discharge machining

Mn+1AXn(MAX) phases are a family of nanolaminated compounds that possess unique combination of typical ceramic properties and typical metallic properties.As a member of MAX phase,Ti2 AlN bulk materials are attractive for some high-temperature applications.The synthesis,characteristics and machining performance of hybrid Ti2 AlN bulk materials were focused on in this work.The bulk samples mainly consisting of Ti2 AlN MAX phase with density close to theoretic one were synthesized by a spark plasma sintering method.Scanning electron microscopy results indicate homogenous distribution of Ti2 AlN grains in the samples.Micro-hardness values are almost constant under different loads (6-6.5 GPa).A machining test was carried out to compare the effect of material properties on micro-electrical discharge machining (micro-EDM) performance for Ti2 AlN bulk samples and Ti6242 alloy.The machining performance of the Ti2 AlN sample is better than that of the Ti6242 alloy.The inherent mechanism was discussed by considering their electrical and thermal conductivity.

RESEARCH OF MICRO ELECTRO DISCHARGE MACHINING EQUIPMENT AND PROCESS TECHNIQUES

Micro electro discharge machining (micro EDM) is a feasible way tomanufacture micro structures and has potential application in advanced industrial fields. For therealization of micro EDM, it is necessary to pay careful attention to its equipment design and thedevelopment of process techniques. The present status of research and development of micro EDMequipment and process techniques is overviewed. A micro electro discharge machine incorporated withan inchworm type of micro feed mechanism is introduced, and a micro electro discharge machine fordrilling micro holes suitable to industrial use is also introduced. Some of the machiningexperiments carried out on the micro EDM prototypes are shown and the feasibility of the micro EDMtechnology to practical use is discussed.

Measurement of metal vapor cooling speed during nanoparticle formation by pulsed wire discharge

Pulsed wire discharge(PWD) is one of nano-sized powder production methods. The object of this work is to study influence of the plasma/vapor/particle density using computer simulation and to establish temperature measurement method using a high-speed infrared thermometer in the PWD process. The temperature correction coefficient was obtained from geometric computer simulation results. Obtained correction coefficient was applied to the temperature measuring results. It was found from this result that obtained correction coefficient was appropriate. A temperature measurement method was established by using the high-speed infrared thermometer in PWD.

Fabrication of Micro Structures by Ultrashort Voltage Pulse Electrical Discharge Machining

The machining of small holes and array holes has been a difficult problem in machining field. Tiny hole is widely used in mechanical field, for instance, fuel injection nozzles, spinneret holes for synthetic fibers and wire drawing dies. This paper investigated the application of EDM (electrical discharge machining) to the fabrication of micro structures. There are obvious limitations in the process of micro-electrical discharge machining, such as electrode wear, unstable discharge condition and low machining efficiency. The effects of EDM parameters were investigated, such as voltage, pulse frequency, and frequency of ultrasonic vibration applied to electrode. Micro holes were machined with Pt electrode made by focused-ion-beam chemical vapor deposition (FIB-CVD) and Cu electrode made by wire-electrode cutting. The comparison experiments between EDM and ECM (electrochemical machining) indicated that the processing of ECM has serious stray current corrosion and poor machining precision. Moreover, the workpiece vibration was firstly proposed to be utilized in the micro-electrical discharge machining. It can be concluded that maximum machine could be obtained under the amplitude ratio of 76%, which was an appropriate parameter.

External UHF Sensor for GIS PD Insulation Defect from Resin Hole

In view of the effective perception demand of PD(Partial Discharge)insulation defect of in-service GIS(Gas Insulated Switchgear),the external UHF(Ultra High Frequency,0.3−3 GHz)sensing technology for GIS PD insulation defect fromresin hole is studied in this paper.Firstly,rectangular waveguide theory is used to analyze the electromagnetic wave propagation characteristics from rectangular resin hole in GIS disc insulator.It is found that the energy of leaked electromagnetic wave mainly concentrates in the frequency band above 1 GHz.Then based on this frequency band characteristics,a cavity-backed bowtie sensor for GIS PD external detection is designed optimized by HFSS finite element software,in band of 1–3 GHz,its maximum VSWR is 7,the minimum is 1.1,the average is 2.9,and in band of 0.3–1 GHz,the maximum and minimum VSWR is 42.8 and 7,the average is 20.6.Finally,a sensor prototype is made,its sensitivity experiment is carried out on 220 kV GIS,experimental results show that the designed sensor can stably detect the PD electromagnetic wave signal leaked fromthe resin hole,and the signal energy in frequency band range is consistent with the theoretical analysis results.