REVIEW ARTICLE


A Review on Abrasive Waterjet and Wire Electrical Discharge Machining – High Speed



Shijin Zhang*, Yuqiang Wu, Yanli Wang
College of Resources and Environmental Science, State and Local Joint Engineering Laboratory of Methane Drainage in Complex Coal Gas Seam, Key Laboratory for the Exploitation of Southwest Resources and Environmental Hazards Control Engineering of Ministry of Education, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400030, P.R. China

Article Information


Identifiers and Pagination:

Year: 2011
Volume: 5
First Page: 178
Last Page: 185
Publisher Id: TOMEJ-5-178
DOI: 10.2174/1874155X01105010178

Article History:

Received Date: 14/2/2011
Revision Received Date: 21/4/2011
Acceptance Date: 17/6/2011
Electronic publication date: 19/12/2011
Collection year: 2010

© 2010 Zhang et al

open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode). This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

* Address correspondence to this author at the College of Resources and Environmental Science, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400030, P.R. China; Tel: +86-023-65106122(office), +86-13648438470 (Mobile); Fax: +86-023-65106122; E-mails: zhangshij@hotmail.com, shijinzhang@cqu.edu.cn


Abstract

Technological advancement, on the one hand, makes Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) much faster. One example of that is the presence of Wire Electrical Discharge Machining – High Speed (WEDM-HS) machine, which makes the material removal rate as high as 80 mm2/min. On the other hand, it also make Abrasive Waterjet (AWJ) achieve much better quality surface and tighter tolerance. As a result, these two machining processes have converged to the point where they can achieve same requirements quite nicely in selected applications. However, when examining closely, these two processes are quite different in many aspects. This paper reviews the main features of these two processes. The review leads to the essential differences between these two processes. Based on this review, proper applications of each process has been provided.

Keywords: WEDM-HS, AWJ, cutting mechanism, cutting quality, surface damage, cutting efficiency.