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Abstract
This study investigates the near dry electrical discharge machining (EDM) process. Near dry EDM uses liquidgas mixture as the two
phase dielectric uid and has the benet to tailor the concentration of liquid and properties of dielectric medium to meet desired
performance targets. A dispenser for minimum quantity lubrication (MQL) is utilized to supply a minute amount of liquid droplets at a
controlled rate to the gap between the workpiece and electrode. Wire EDM cutting and EDM drilling are investigated under the wet, dry,
and near dry conditions. The mixture of water and air is the dielectric uid used for near dry EDM in this study. Near dry EDM shows
advantages over the dry EDM in higher material removal rate (MRR), sharper cutting edge, and less debris deposition. Compared to wet
EDM, near dry EDM has higher material removal rate at low discharge energy and generates a smaller gap distance. However, near dry
EDM places a higher thermal load on the electrode, which leads to wire breakage in wire EDM and increases electrode wear in EDM
drilling. A mathematical model, assuming that the gap distance consists of the discharge distance and material removal depth, was
developed to quantitatively correlate the waterair mixtures dielectric strength and viscosity to the gap distance.
r 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Near dry machining; Electrical discharge machining; Material removal rate; Dielectric strength
1. Introduction
The selection and delivery of the dielectric uid are
critical to the material removal rate, surface integrity, and
environmental impacts of electrical discharge machining
(EDM). Dielectric uid acts as an electrical insulation
barrier in the gap between the workpiece and electrode.
High-energy density EDM pulses are generated inside the
dielectric uid for material removal. The dielectric
strength, dened as the maximum electric eld strength
that the dielectric uid can withstand intrinsically without
breakdown, is an important parameter to determine the
gap distance [1]. Thermal and mechanical properties
including the thermal conductivity, heat capacity, and
viscosity of the dielectric uid also inuence the strength
of explosions generated by EDM pulses and the subsequent
melting, solidication, and heat transfer among the
workpiece, electrode, and dielectric uid [2].
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Table 1
Electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties of air, deionized water, and kerosene at room temperature [713]
Air
Deionized water
Kerosene/mineral oil
3 [7]
0.026 [10]
1.04 [10]
0.019 [10]
13 [8]
0.606 [10]
4.19 [10]
0.92 [10]
1422 [9]
0.149 [11]
2.16 [12]
1.64 [13]
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Table 2
Average gap distance in wire EDM cutting under wet, dry, and near dry conditions (te 14 ms, t0 250 ms, u0 72 V, ue 45 V)
EDM condition
Wet
Dry
75
50
35
21
15
1
43.0
No
0.98
42.7
No
0.75
41.9
No
0.59
40.9
No
0.42
38.9
No
0.34
37.6
No
0.22
33.6
No
0.17
31.4
No
0
N/A
Yes
13.0
0.92
12.8
0.92
10.7
0.92
9.24
0.91
7.59
0.86
6.75
0.80
5.57
0.66
5.01
0.56
3.00
0.019
Table 3
Average gap distance in EDM drilling under wet and near dry EDM conditions (ie 10 A, te 10 ms, t0 70 ms, ue 60 V)
EDM condition
Wet
Dry
35
21
15
1
75
0.80
65.0
0.48
62.5
0.35
60.1
0.18
45.3
0.12
35.2
0
N/Aa
13.0
0.92
11.4
0.92
7.86
0.85
7.18
0.80
5.50
0.57
4.66
0.40
3
0.019
Signicant taper, found in dry EDM drilled holes, makes the average gap distance measurement difcult.
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Wet EDM
Near dry EDM (flow rate = 5.3 ml/min)
Dry EDM
MRR (mm3/min)
100
10
Wire
breakage
t e = 18 s
0.
Max. t 0
te = 4 s
T on
Short circuit
0.01
0
0
200
400
600
800
1000
Wet EDM
te=18 s
te=14 s
te=18 s
te=14 s
te=10 s
te=4 s
te=10 s
te=4 s
II
III
t e = 18 s
Wire
breakage
Max t 0
C
t e = 4 s
Short circuit
0
0
200
400
600
800
1000
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te=18 s
te=14 s
te=18 s
te=14 s
te=10 s
te=4 s
te=10 s
te=4 s
Wire
breakage
t e = 18 s
Max. t 0
t e = 4 s
0
0
200
400
600
800
1000
Fig. 4. MRR envelopes of near dry wire EDM cutting at two deionized water ow rates (5.3 and 75 ml/min, ie 25 A, ue 45 V).
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Wet
Dry
1.22 mm
1.25mm
Near dry
Top
view
Top
1.13 mm
CrossSectonal
side
view
Bottom
Drilling
time (s)
1.08 mm
0.87 mm
1.13 mm
11
428
13
Fig. 5. Optical micrographs on holes drilled on 1.27 mm Al6061: (a) wet, (b) dry, and (c) near dry EDM conditions (ie 10 A, te 10 ms, t0 70 ms,
ue 60 V).
10
MRR (mm3/min)
i e =Low
10 A
Id
i e = 12 A
Id
i e = 15 A
0
5
8
15
21
Deionized water flow rate in the mist (ml/min)
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Zm Zw Za 1 1 sn Za ,
(1)
(2)
Wire EDM
50
Gap distance, d (m)
S m S w Sa sm S a ,
60
40
30
Fitted curve:
d = 4.510-6/(10 0.9+3) + 4.610-5(0.901(1-(1- )5.0 )+0.019)
20
10
Experimental value
Model value
0
0
Air
0.25
0.5
0.75
1
Deionized
water
90
80
Gap distance, d (m)
2279
70
60
50
Fitted curve:
d = 10-7/(10 0.8+3) + 7.710-5(0.901(1-(1- )4.7)+0.019)
40
30
20
10
Experimental value
Model value
0
0
Air
0.25
0.5
0.75
1
Deionized
water
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EDM drilling
14
12
10
Dielectric strength
Dielectric strength
Dynamic viscosity
Dynamic viscosity
7
6
5
S m = 10 0.82 + 3
S m = 10 0.90 + 3
2280
0
0
Air
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
Deionized
water
(A.1)
L V2
,
D 2
(A.2)
(A.3)
(A.4)
qw
.
qw qa
(A.5)
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References
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