Development and Rheological Characterisation of Abrasive Flow Finishing Medium for Finishing Macro to Micro Features

Sachin Singh; M. Ravi Sankar

doi:10.14429/dsj.70.14790

Sachin Singh Department of Mechanical Engineering, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala - 147 004
M. Ravi Sankar Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, Tirupati - 517 506

DOI: https://doi.org/10.14429/dsj.70.14790

Keywords: Abrasive flow finishing, Surface roughness, Medium, Rheology

Abstract

Technological advancement demands the manufacturing of components with a fine surface finish at a minimal cost. This scenario acts as the driving force for the research communities to develop economic finishing processes. Abrasive flow finishing (AFF) is one of the advanced finishing processes employed for finishing, deburring, radiusing and recast layer removal from the workpiece surfaces. AFF process uses a finishing medium that acts as a deformable tool during the finishing process. It is the rheological properties of the medium that profoundly influences the end surface finish obtained on the workpiece after the AFF process. In the current work, an attempt is made to develop an economic AFF medium by using viscoelastic polymers i.e., soft styrene and soft silicone polymer. Detailed static and dynamic characterisation of the medium is carried out. Later, to study the finishing performance of the developed medium, AFF experiments are performed for the finishing of macro and micro feature components. The experimental study showed that the nano surface finish could be achieved by varying the viscosity of the developed medium. Developed medium achieved 89.06 per cent improvement in surface roughness during finishing of tubes (macro feature component), while 92.13 per cent and 88.11 per cent surface roughness improvement is achieved during finishing of microslots and microholes (micro feature component), respectively.

Author Biographies

Sachin Singh, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala - 147 004

Dr Sachin Singh completed his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, Assam. His research work involves experimental study and modeling of advanced finishing processes. Currently, he is working as Assistant Professor in Mechanical Engineering Department at Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, Patiala, Punjab. He has nearly 15 research papers in various journals and conferences.

M. Ravi Sankar, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Tirupati, Tirupati - 517 506

Dr M.R. Sankar is working as Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering Department at Indian Institute of Technology, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. His specialisation is advanced materials and manufacturing, ultra precision machining and rheology of complex fluids. He has nearly 40 research papers in various high impact journals.