Heavens Light is Our Guide

Department of Industrial & Production Engineering

ELECTRODISCHARGE MACHINING

Group :2

Group Members:

AHMED SOBHAN ABIR (145011)

MD. NAZMUL AHSAN (145012)

MD. RAKIB MIAH (145014)

MD. HASIBUL HASAN (145015)

MD. MUZADDID ALAM (145016)

DEBAPRIYA BANIK (145017)

MD. AHASANUR RAHMAN (145018)

MD. ITTEHAD MUSTAKIM (145019)

Course Title : Production Process-II

Course No. : IPE 3111

Class : 3rd year Odd Semester

Submitted to : MD. ARIFUL ISLAM, Assistant Professor, Dept. of IPE, RUET.

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Electrodischarge Machining

1. Introduction:
Many manufactured products require machining at some stage of their production
sequence. Machining is the removal of unwanted materials from the workpiece so as to
obtain a finished product of the desired size, shape, and surface quality. Generally, machining
ranges from relatively rough cleaning of castings to high precision micromachining of
mechanical components that require narrow tolerances.

2. Classification of Machining:

Figure 1: Classification of machining1

3. Electrodischarge Machining:
Electrodischarge Machining (EDM) is the process of machining electrically conductive
materials by using precisely controlled sparks that occur between an electrode and a

1
Hassan Abdel-Gawad El-Hofy, Fundamentals of Machining Processes: Conventional and Nonconventional
processes, 2nd ed. (Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2013), p.4.
 2

workpiece in the presence of a dielectric fluid. The electrode may be considered the cutting
tool.2

In this process the metal is removed from the workpiece due to erosion caused by rapidly
recurring spark discharges taking place between the tool and work.3
Fig.2 shows the basic components of EDM.

Figure 2: Basic Components of EDM4

4. Important Characteristics of EDM:

Tool materials: Copper, brass and graphite.

Workpiece materials: Conducting metals and alloys.
Process parameters: Voltage, capacitance, spark gap and melting temperature of
workpiece.
Material removal: Melting and vaporisation. 5

2
Elman C. Jameson, Electrical Discharge Machining (Michigan: Society of Manufacturing Engineers, 2001),
p.1.
3
G. R. Nagpal, Machine Tool Engineering. 8th ed. 1999. Reprint (Delhi: Khanna Publishers, 2004), p.469.
4
Jameson, Electrical Discharge Machining, p.2.
5
R. K. Rajput, A Textbook of Manufacturing Technology: Manufacturing Processes, 1st ed. (New Delhi: Laxmi
Publications, 2007), p.614.
 3

5. Types of EDM: There are two types of EDM.

(i) Die-sinking EDM:

Die-sinking EDM machines require the electrode to be machined in the exact opposite
shape as the one in the workpiece.6

(ii) Wire-cut EDM:

Wire-cut EDM machines use a continuous wire as the electrode. Sparking takes place
from the electrode wire-side surface to the workpiece.7

6. Working Principle:

Figure 3: Working Principle of EDM8

EDM process involves controlled erosion of electrically conducting materials by the
initiation of rapid and repetitive electrical discharge between the tool (cathode) and
workpiece (anode) separated by a dielectric fluid medium. A suitable gap between the tool
and workpiece is maintained to cause the spark discharge. The gap can be varied to match the
machining conditions such as metal removal rate.
As soon as the voltage gradient set up between the tool and the workpiece is sufficient
enough to breakdown the dielectric medium, a conducting electrical path is developed for
spark discharge owing to ionization of the fluid medium and thereby causes the current to
flow. The temperature of the spot hit by the spark may rise upto 10000 C causing the work
surface to melt and vaporize and ultimately to take the form of a sphere as it is quenched by
the surrounding fluid.

6
Jameson, Electrical Discharge Machining, p.1.
7
Ibid.
8
Rajput, A Textbook of Manufacturing Technology, p.614.
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If the tool is fed downwards, maintaining the predetermined gap, the tool shapelprofile
will be reproduced on the workpiece.

The spark gap, generally 0.01 to 0.1 mm, is adjusted so that the gap voltage is around 70
percent of the supply voltage for charging the capacitor bank. Higher gap although increases
the discharge energy but it decreases the spark frequency due to increase in charging time of
the capacitor.
The servocontrol unit is provided to maintain the predetermined gap. It senses the gap
voltage and compares it with the present value and the difference in voltage is then used to
control the movement of servomotor to adjust the gap.9

7. Process Parameters:
Electro-discharge machining process can be controlled by parameters like pulse on time,
voltage and current. Fig.4 shows a general waveform used in EDM.

Figure 4: Variation of pulse voltage and current with time10

The spark current flows from a source whose voltage is not less than the limiting voltage
of the spark gap. Typical variation of voltage and current in a pulse generator type power
supply is given schematically in Fig.3. As can be noted, the pulse-on time (tc) is increased
considerably while the pulse-off time (ti) is reduced, which results in the machine removing
material most of the time. Further, the peak current is only a little above the average current,
thereby reducing the peak temperatures and reducing the tool wear. 11
The metal removal rates in EDM depend upon the following parameters
1. Current in each spark
2. Frequency of the discharge
3. Electrode material
4. Workpiece material
5. Dielectric flushing condition.12

9
Ibid.
10
P. N. Rao, Manufacturing Technology Metal Cutting and Machine Tools, 2nd ed. (New Delhi: Tata
McGraw-Hill, 2009), p.311.
11
Ibid.
12
Rao, Manufacturing Technology, p.312.
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Figure 5: Effect of the current in each spark, which determines the material removed 13
In Fig.5, the material removed increases but surface finish decreases with the increasing
amount of current.

8. Power Supply:

Figure 6: EDM Power Supply Subassemblies 14

Fig.6 illustrates the subassemblies located within the power supply cabinet. These
subassemblies may not appear as separate units, but as printed-circuit boards located in
holding racks.

13
Ibid.
14
Jameson, Electrical Discharge Machining, p.40.
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The EDM machinist is primarily concerned with the EDM-power supply control panel.
This panel contains controls for setting:

Spark-ON time,
Spark-OFF time,
Peak amperes,
Servo-feed rate and stability. 15

9. Advantages:

a) The surface finish obtained is very good.

b) This process can be used for any hard material. Materials like carbide, ceramics can
be easily machined by this process.
c) The tool material need not be harder than work material. 16
d) Machining time is less than conventional machining processes.
e) Any complicated shape that can be made on the tool can be reproduced on the
workpiece.
f) Considerably easier and more economical polishing can be done on the cratering type
surfaces developed by EDM.
g) Fine holes can be easily drilled.
h) Enables high accuracy on tools and dies, because they can be machined in as hard
condition.17

10. Disadvantages:

a) Compared to conventional processes, power required is very high.

b) In some materials, surface cracking may take place.
c) Sharp corners cannot be produced.
d) Material removal rate is low.
e) Surface tends to be rough for larger removal rates.
f) It cannot be applied to non-conducting materials.18

11. Applications:

a) The process can be applied to all electrically conducting metals and alloys irrespective
of their melting points, toughness hardness or brittleness.
b) Very useful in tool manufacturing due to ease with which hard metals and alloyed can
be machined.
c) Resharpening of cutting tools and broaches, trepanning of holes with straight or
curved axes.
d) Fragile and slender workpieces can be machined without distortion.

15
Ibid.
16
Nagpal, Machine Tool Engineering, p.470-71.
17
Rajput, A Textbook of Manufacturing Technology, p.614-15.
18
Ibid.
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e) Machining of cavities for dies and remachining of die cavities without annealing. 19
f) The Wire EDM is used in stamping dies, drawing and extruding tools, templates,
gauges, cams and plastic molding dies. 20

12. Conclusion:
In making a die cavity, by conventional method many operations like milling, grinding,
drilling and finishing operations are to be performed at different stages. Whereas by EDM
process the same die cavity can be finished by a fewer stages like making the electrode tool
and EDM machining, i.e., by faster cycle time. It reduces the machining requirements.
Further, the process is economical even for one piece production.

19
Ibid.
20
Nagpal, Machine Tool Engineering, p.483.
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Bibliography
El-Hofy, Hassan Abdel-Gawad, Fundamentals of Machining Processes: Conventional and
Nonconventional processes, 2nd ed. (Boca Raton: CRC Press, 2013), p.4.

Jameson, Elman C., Electrical Discharge Machining (Michigan: Society of Manufacturing

Engineers, 2001), p.1-2, 40.

Nagpal, G. R., Machine Tool Engineering. 8th ed. 1999. Reprint (Delhi: Khanna Publishers,
2004), p.469-71, 483.

Rajput, R. K., A Textbook of Manufacturing Technology: Manufacturing Processes, 1st ed.

(New Delhi: Laxmi Publications, 2007), p.614-15.

Rao, P. N., Manufacturing Technology Metal Cutting and Machine Tools, 2nd ed. (New
Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill, 2009), p.311-12.