Electrolytic in process dressing (ELID) applied to double side grinding of ceramic materials.

摘要

The objective of the present work is to design, optimize, and validate an electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID)-assisted double side grinding process for finishing advanced ceramic components. To attain this objective, an original ELID double side grinding system was designed, fabricated, and operated at Precision Micro-Machining Center at The University of Toledo, Ohio.; The ELID technique was selected from among other options to assure the in-situ dressing of the metal-bonded superabrasive grinding wheel and to maintain its cutting ability throughout the operation, which is, otherwise, a challenging enterprise. Optimizing the ELID double side grinding process parameters is an important goal of the present study. To achieve this goal, a complex integrated model was developed and validated through extensive experimental testing.; Four analytical computerized models were developed and integrated: (1) an improved kinematic model of double side grinding accounting for workpiece rotation, which is used to simulate the grinding trajectories; (2) a microscopic model of the interaction between a single diamond grit and the work surface, which is used to predict the volume of material removed; (3) a stochastic model for the topographical characterization of the superabrasive wheel, which leads to a new prediction method of depth of indentation; and (4) an electrolytic oxidation model, which explains the dynamics of the oxide layer.; In order to validate the models and to confirm the optimized process, experimental tests were conducted under different conditions: with vitrified and metallic bond grinding wheels, with various average grain sizes of diamond grits, with different superabrasive concentrations, with different grinding fluids, with and without ELID assistance.; Our findings show that an optimized ceramic double side grinding process using fine diamond grit is more efficient than lapping in producing very fine surfaces. The experiments confirmed the superiority of ELID-assisted DSG over the conventional operation in terms of productivity, surface finish and geometrical precision of the ground surfaces, ease of wheel maintenance, and prevalence of ductile material removal mode.