Thermodynamic analysis of material removal mechanisms indicates that an ideal tool for shaping of materials is a high energy beam, having infinitely small cross-section, precisely controlled depth, and direction of penetration, and does not cause any detrimental effects on the generated surface. The production of the beam should be relatively inexpensive and environmentally sound while the material removal rate should be reasonably high for the process to be viable, A narrow stream of high energy water mixed with abrasive particles comes close to meeting these requirements because abrasive waterjet machining has become one of the leading manufacturing technologies in a relatively short period of time. This paper gives an overview of the basic research and development activities in the area of abrasive waterjet machining in the 1990s in the United States.
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