Improving electrical discharge machined surfaces using magnetic abrasive finishing

A recast layer is invariably present on surfaces produced by electrical discharge machining (EDM). For some metals with high hardness, the recast layer may contain micro-cracks. This damaged layer can affect the service life of the parts produced by this method. This investigation demonstrates that magnetic abrasive finishing (MAF) process using unbonded magnetic abrasives (UMA), can improve the quality of EDM machined surfaces effectively. The UMA used herein is a mechanical mixture of steel grit and SiC abrasive. SKD11 tool steel was used as the workpiece. Experimental results show that the recast layer and micro-cracks on EDM machined surfaces can be completely removed and a new surface of roughness on the order of 0.04 mum Ra can be produced. Additionally, experiments using the Taguchi method and L-18 orthogonal array enable the determination of the optimum process conditions for improving the surface finish. Further, the significance of the control factors was identified with the assistance of analysis of variance (ANOVA), and the optimum combination of the process parameters was verified by conducting several confirmatory experiments.