WEDM single crater asymmetry

Abstract

In wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM), the erosion is made through a series of overlapped craters. The shape of these craters has a relevant impact on the characteristics of the machined surface, from surface roughness to heat effects during the spark. Current models on EDM process do not represent specific WEDM characteristics, such as radial asymmetry of the crater or geometrical effects on the crater shape. In order to characterize the crater’s dimensions in WEDM, single discharge experiments are performed on polished steel for pulses with different energy levels. A 3D optical microscope is used to map the single craters’ topographies (experimental work). To capture the craters’ dimensions, an ellipsoidal equation is applied with a Levenberg–Marquardt algorithm. The ellipsoidal equation is capable of identifying the dimensions along the wire length, perpendicular to the wire and the depth of the crater. The ratio between the dimension along the wire and the dimension perpendicular to the wire is used to define a crater’s aspect ratio and characterizes its elongation. The aspect ratio of the single craters is found to be dependent on the pulse energy. Low-energy pulses create rounder craters, while high-energy pulses form elongated craters that are longer along the wire length. Such behavior suggests that the crater formation is constricted by the wire geometry, having a preferential direction of growth, along the wire length.