Experiment #02

To study the different parts of chemical milling, their function (ECM), ECM
grinding, their function & perform operation on a given work-piece.

Working principle of Chemical milling:

The main working principle of chemical machining is chemical
etching. The part of the workpiece whose material is to be
removed, is brought into the contact of chemical called enchant.
The metal is removed by the chemical attack of enchant. The
method of making contact of metal with the enchant is masking.
The portion of workpiece where no material is to be removed, is
mashed before chemical etching.

Process Details of CHM

Following steps are normally followed in the process of CHM :
Cleaning The first step of the process is a cleaning of workpiece, this is required to ensure that
material will be removed uniformly from the surfaces to be processed.
Masking: is similar to masking action is any machining operation. This is the action of
selecting material that is to be removed and another that is not to be removed. The material
which is not to be removed is applied with a protective coating called maskant. This is made of a
materials are neoprene, polyvinylchloride, polyethylene or any other polymer. Thinkers of
maskent is maintained upto 0.125 mm. The portion of workpiece having no application of
maskent is etched during the process of etching.
Etching: In this step the material is finally removed. The workpiece is immersed in the enchant
where the material of workpiece having no protective coating is removed by the chemical action
of enchant. Enchant is selected depending on the workpiece material and rate of material
removal; and surface finish required. There is a necessity to ensure that maskant and enchant
should be chemically in active. Common enchants are H2SO4, FeCL3, HNO3. Selection of
enchant also affects MRR. As in CHM process, MRR is indicated as penetration rates
(mm/min).
Demasking: After the process is completed demasking is done. Demasking is an act of
removing maskent after machining.
Application of CHM The application and working of CHM process are indicated in Figure 5.4,
various applications of CHM are discussed below. Chemical Milling It is widely used in aircraft
industry. It is the preparation of complicated geometry on the workpiece using CHM process.
 Electrochemical machining (ECM)
Electrochemical machining (ECM) is a machining process in which electrochemical process is
used to remove materials from the workpiece. In the process, workpiece is taken as anode and
tool is taken as cathode. The two electrodes workpiece and tool is immersed in an electrolyte
(such as NaCl). When the voltage is applied across the two electrodes, the material removal from
the workpiece starts. The workpiece and tool is placed very close to each other without touching.
In ECM the material removal takes place at atomic level so it produces a mirror finish surface.

 This process is used to machine only conductive materials.

Working Principle

ECM working is opposite to the electrochemical or galvanic coating or deposition process.

During electrochemical machining process, the reactions take place at the electrodes i.e. at the
anode (workpiece) and cathode (tool) and within the electrolyte.
Let’s take an example of machining low carbon steel which is mainly composed of ferrous alloys
(Fe). We generally use neutral salt solution of sodium chloride (NaCl) as the electrolyte to
machine ferrous alloys. The ionic dissociation of NaCl and water takes place in the electrolyte as
shown below.

As the potential difference is applied across the electrode, the movement of ions starts in
between the tool and w/p. The positive ions moves towards the tool (cathode) and negative ions
move towards the workpiece.
At cathode the hydrogen ions takes electrons and gets converted into hydrogen gas .
Working Process of Electrochemical Machining
 First the workpiece is assembled in the fixture and tool is brought close to the workpiece. The
tool and workpiece is immersed in a suitable electrolyte.
 After that, potential difference is applied across the w/p (anode) and tool (cathode). The removal
of material starts. The material is removed as in the same manner as we have discussed above in
the working principle.
 Tool feed system advances the tool towards the w/p and always keeps a required gap in between
them. The material from the w/p is comes out as positive ions and combine with the ions present
in the electrolyte and precipitates as sludge. Hydrogen gas is liberated at cathode during the
machining process.
 Since the dissociation of the material from the w/p takes place at atomic level, so it gives
excellent surface finish.
 The sludge from the tank is taken out and separated from the electrolyte. The electrolyte after
filtration again transported to the tank for the ECM process.
Application
 The ECM process is used for die sinking operation, profiling and contouring, drilling, grinding,
trepanning and micro machining.
 It is used for machining steam turbine blades within closed limits.
Advantages
 Negligible tool wear.
 Complex and concave curvature parts can be produced easily by the use of convex and concave
tools.
 No forces and residual stress are produced, because there is no direct contact between tool and
workpiece.
 Excellent surface finish is produced.
 Less heat is generated.
Disadvantages
 The risk of corrosion for tool, w/p and equipment increases in the case of saline and acidic
electrolyte.
 Electrochemical machining is capable of machining electrically conductive materials only.
 High power consumption.
 High initial investment cost.
Process Parameter
s.no parameter values
1. Power supply
type Direct current
voltage 2 to 35 V
current 50 to 40,000 A
2. Electrolyte
Material NaCL and NaNo3
Temperature 20 ℃ to 50 ℃
Flow rate 20 lpm/100 A current
pressure 0.2 to 20 bar
 Dilution 100 g/l to 500 g/l
3. Working gap 0.1mm to 2mm
4. Over cut 0.2mm to 3mm
5. Feed rate 0.5mm/min to 15mm/min
6. Electrode material Copper, brass,and bronze
7. Surface roughness 0.2 to 1.5mmµm