Non- Conventional Machining Processes as Expedient
Alternatives for Conventional Machining Processes
Tanzila Younas
Mechatronics Engineering Department
Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and
Technology
Karachi, Sindh, 75100
Pakistan
Email: tanzila@szabist.edu.pk
Jalpa Kumari
Mechatronics Engineering Department
Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and
Technology
Karachi, Sindh, 75100
Pakistan
Email: jalpakumari9@gmail.com
Abstract - The technological developments in the field
of materials and manufacturing processes have been
increased rapidly over the last few decades. The machining
of advanced materials and alloys with greater mechanical
and physical properties using conventional machining
processes has got more difficult and inconvenient in
context with high tool maintenance and high cost of
machining in conventional methods. Moreover, the
necessity to use new materials and the demand of
functional requirements and miniaturization has led to
evolution of traditional machining processes.
Unconventional machining processes offer an attractive
and viable alternative for conventional processes of
machining. The Non-Conventional machining methods are
implemented in cases where Conventional machining
processes are not workable, competent or available in cut-
price. This paper aims to provide a comparison between
Conventional and Non-Conventional Machining processes
that are currently under use/ research in the
manufacturing arena.
Index terms — Conventional methods, Manufacturing
processes, Non-conventional methods, Properties of
materials.
I. INTRODUCTION
In present, all the manufacturing companies are trying to
compete in a more and more advanced global market. The
result of this global competition has led to the research and
development of new materials, manufacturing processes and
Maha Manzoor
Mechatronics Engineering Department
Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and
Technology
Karachi, Sindh, 75100
Pakistan
Email: mahamanzoor01@gmail.com
products. The most important aspect of this development is the
advanced design and manufacturing concepts involved in the
production of materials. The necessity to use new materials for
different applications in industries and the control on their
dimensional accuracies has led to the evolution of modem
manufacturing processes.
This paper provides a short review of some of the
manufacturing methods which are used currently/ under
research and a brief comparison between the Conventional and
Non-Conventional manufacturing processes. The brief
comparison may provide a little help in deciding whether the
non-traditional processes are a viable alternative to the
traditional ones.
II. MANUFACTURING PROCESSES:
Any process which involves the transformation of raw
materials into finished useful products is known as
manufacturing [1]. This process of transformation can be
performed in many ways, by placing the material together, by
applying specific amount of stresses or strains onto the
material, by moving the material from one region of machining
operation to another and removing unwanted material.
These methods of transforming materials or manufacturing are
getting more and more advanced with the passage of time. The
conventional methods of manufacturing are being followed to
process those materials which lie within certain level of
hardness condition [2]. To process those materials which have
mechanical or physical properties beyond discrete level of
workable condition, new processes with unconventional processes are based on directed energy source concept, such
approaches are used. These new techniques of machining that these operations are performed without immediate contact
which are known as Non- Conventional machining processes between the tool and work piece, which provide the
are diverse in nature and differ from each other by their advantages of banishing cutting tools, such as abrasive wheels
characteristic features, operations and fields of application. and drills. Such operations include the use of high power
The machining techniques which are usually employed for Laser beam, electron beam, electro discharge machining,
Non-conventional processes include Abrasive Jet Machining, electrochemical machining etc. instead of using conventional
Water Jet Machining, Ultrasonic Machining, Electrical cutting tools [4].
Discharge Machining, Electron Beam Machining, LASER
Beam Machining and many others [2]. In engineering the
competitive pressure for progress leads the manufacturers to
do the struggle of making things quicker, cheaper and better
than before. The advancement in manufacturing processes is
an account of the results of one such attempt.

In the subsequent eras of development, manufacturing

industries will demand more substantial strategies for
controlling of machining operations in a highly mechanized
manufacturing environment. Worthwhile utilization of the
latest manufacturing equipments and processes is dependent
mainly on the applications of information technology (IT).
Prevailing methods for the control of manufacturing Fig. 01: The tool and workpiece are in contact in a lathe machine
operations, known as Conventional processes are mainly based [5].
on the expertise of the technician and are becoming outdated
with the rise of robotic and scientific era. The machinery
which is utilized in these traditional processes include Lathe
Machines, Milling Machines, Grinding Machines, Drilling and
Press Machines, Shaping Machines and many others of similar
working principles and manual controls [3].

The advancement and development in the manufacturing

industries demand an essential need for these conventional
machining methods to be replaced by science based and more
efficient processes.

III. COMPARISON BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL

Fig. 02: The tool and workpiece are not having contact in LASER
AND NON-CONVENTIONAL MACHINING
machine [6].
PROCESSES:
B. Shaping of High Property Materials:
The advanced machining processes are called non-traditional
The continuously increasing demand for highly upgraded
or non-conventional because they utilize new forms of energy
product performance and stiff market competition has led to
and tools which are not used in industries commonly. The
the advancement in diversity and supremacy of materials, like
Non-conventional machining techniques come into the picture
semiconductors, ceramics, composites, carbides, diamond and
as viable alternatives of traditional machining methods for
variety of glass. These substances have properties which are
many reasons. The main factors which require the replacing of
very difficult to handle. They possess high durability and
conventional processes by non-conventional methods include
solidity at raised temperatures, high stability, high strength to
machinability, the geometry of work piece, complexity, surface
weight ratio, high corrosion and oxidation resistance and
integrity and precision requirement. The following paragraphs
chemical inertness. However, such materials with excellent
describe some detail on the comparison of these two processes
properties result in top-quality product performance, but their
and the need to replace them.
explicit machining and shaping can be very tough through
conventional techniques.
A. Interaction Between the Work Piece and Tool:
Conventional methods of manufacturing processes involve
The conventional methods of construction and fabrication of
direct interaction of work piece and tool. These processes
materials result in a high tooling cost, degradations of strength
depend primarily upon the interaction of mechanical energy
and some useful mechanical properties as well as loss of
with the work piece, while the non-conventional machining
material [5].
Therefore, there is an essential requirement for developing
such processes which are proficient for giving sufficient
material removal rate (MRR) and which cause minimum
impairment to the material properties. Other properties of
materials such as complexity of work surface, size and shape
miniaturization (i.e. Micro-machining) and surface integrity
also demand the advancement of conventional methods.

Fig. 05: No chip formation in laser cutting of materials [10].

Fig. 03: Wastage of material in Lathe machining [7].

Fig. 06: Chip formation in conventional drilling process [10].

D. Types of Tools Used:

In conventional methods, there are usually physical tools
present for performing the manufacturing operations. For
Fig. 04: Minimum wastage of material and accurate cutting with example, the cutting, facing, boring or tapping tools in Lathe
LASER machining [8]. Machine [11]. In non-conventional methods, physical tools are
not necessarily used. For example, in Laser Jet Machining the
C. Chip Formation: forming operation is executed by a laser beam. Whereas, in
In conventional machining processes, macroscopic chip electrochemical machining a physical tool is very much
formation occurs due to shear deformation during the required for performing the operation.
machining or material removal operations, while non-
conventional machining processes perform the material
removal operations with little or no chip formation. For
instance, in AJM (Abrasive Jet Machining) chips formed are of
minute size and in case of electrochemical machining the
erasure of material occurs due to electrochemical dissolution at
atomic level [9].

Fig. 07: Tools used in Conventional boring process [12].


Fig. 08: Water used as a cutting tool in Water Jet Machining [13].
E. Energy domain used:
In conventional machining material erasure is carried out by
the application of cutting forces, that is the energy domain of
these processes can be categorized as mechanical, whereas
most NTM (Non-Traditional Machining) processes do not
exert mechanical energy to remove material from the work
piece [14]. These processes utilize different energy domains to
provide machining. For example, in Ultra-Sonic Machining
(USM), Abrasive Jet Machining (AJM) and Water Jet
Machining (WJM) mechanical energy is employed to process
the material. However, in Electrochemical Machining (ECM)
electrochemical dissolution is used to constitute material
removal.
Fig. 09: Mechanical Energy used in conventional machining [15].
Fig. 10: Ultrasonic Machining (no mechanical energy required) [16].
F. Cost:
The equipment, tools and machinery used in conventional
processes are not heavily expensive, because the machinery is
used on a large scale for mass production and the techniques
used for machining are simple, whereas the capital cost of non-
traditional processes is very high because of the use of
advanced equipment and highly automated techniques which
are not used commonly. Basically, it is the cost of harnessing
energy which makes these processes expensive.
G. Tool life:
In conventional processes, tool life is lesser because of greater
face contact between the instrument and work piece and due to
the application of high forces and friction which cause high
wear and tear. However, in non-conventional machining, tools
provide excellent performance over a greater time span due to
lesser physical contact between the tool and work piece and
lesser forces or friction and wear.
H. Wastage occurred:
Since Conventional machining involves high wear and tear
during material removal processes and the chip formation is
occurred at macroscopic level, so greater amount of material is
wasted when conventional approach of machining is used. In
non-conventional techniques, the material removal occurs at
microscopic level and so the amount of material wasted is very
less compared to traditional losses.
I. Setup Control:
For controlling and operating the equipment of conventional
processes a skilled or unskilled operator or technician is
required. Most of the conventional operations are manually
operated and thus their control is difficult as well as time
consuming. On the other hand, most of the non-conventional
machining operations are fully automated, only in a few cases
there is a need of highly skilled operator or technician. Since
these processes are mostly automated they require lesser time
consumption.
J. Environmental effects:
Most conventional processes are very noisy because of the
greater surface contact between the machine tools and
material, which results in sound pollution. Non-conventional
methods do not cause any kind of noise pollution since all the
operations are contact free and noise free.
IV. CONCLUSION:
A short review of some of the general comparative factors
between the Conventional and Non-Conventional machining
processes is proposed in this paper.
After this brief study of the comparisons, it is concluded that
the present era of global advancement and development and
the stiff competition between manufacturing industries and
firms demands the production of high quality goods with
excellent material properties, which is more convenient and
feasible with the help of Non-Conventional methods of
machining.
The Non-traditional machining processes are taking preference
over the traditional machining processes because non-
conventional techniques can be used to manufacture complex
property materials with greater strength, accuracy and surface
finish in a short time period. Moreover, the non-conventional
processes require low labor and low tooling cost which makes
them more effective and practical for bulk production.
Whereas, the conventional techniques are time consuming,
require more labor or human sources, have high tooling cost
and are not suitable for manufacturing of materials with high
strength and complex physical properties.
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