| This research covers research and development of the electrolytic in-process dressing (ELID) grinding technology, where material and process issues are systematically investigated.; Experiments on anodic oxidation of cast iron and bronze were performed to determine the growth behavior of the oxides on the metals, their structures and mechanical properties. With SEM and optical microscope, a special technique to measure the oxide thickness was also developed.; A series of theoretical calculations was carried out to highlight the fact that the localized dissolution of the metals around diamond particle results in exposing the cutting edge for efficient grinding and/or cutting.; A model was proposed on the basis of experimental observations and theoretical calculations. It was the first quantitative model that explores the ELID mechanism and could serve guidance to optimize ELID-grinding operations for many applications. This model recognized the key feature of the oxide layer in the process, formulated the dynamic balance between its growth and wear, and emphasized the important role of its nonlinear growth. It not only brought a link between performance and process parameters, but also explained the experimental results and helped ELID-grinding practice.; Grinding experiments performed on OPTICAM PM showed that with a proper selection of operation parameters from the proposed model, (1) ELID-grinding improved surface roughness (RMS) a factor of five for Zerodur; (2) Ductile grinding modes were achieved for Zerodur, BK-7 and SF-6; (3) Mirror finish (RMS {dollar}<{dollar} 500 A) and low subsurface damage (depth {dollar}<{dollar} 1.5 {dollar}mu{dollar}m) for 4-inch silicon wafers were produced within 5 minutes; and (4) the three requirements of high precision optical grinding were achieved simultaneously on BK-7: high surface accuracy (flatness {dollar}< 0.15 mu{dollar}m), low subsurface damage (depth {dollar}< 2 mu{dollar}m) and good surface finish (RMS {dollar}<{dollar} 500 A).; An ELID-cutting system was designed and developed. It consists of a modified cut-off saw with ELID and computer controlled data acquisition, capable of measuring the cutting depth, force and ELID current/voltage. Experiments on cutting various materials with or without ELID showed that ELID could improve cutting effectively. |
