Experimental Study of Ultrasound-Assisted Reaming of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Plastics/Titanium Alloy Stacks

Carbon fiber-reinforced plastic/titanium alloy (CFRP/Ti) stacks are widely used in the aerospace field based on their high strength to weight ratio and heat resistance. High-quality bolt hole assembly is critical for the safety of the aerospace industry. Reaming is a crucial process in precision machining and is extensively used to improve the quality of bolt holes. Due to the different properties of the material, machining with conventional reaming (CR) presents some challenges, such as tolerance variations across the hole group and difficulty in controlling thrust. In this paper, ultrasonic vibration is applied to the reaming process. A geometrical model of ultrasonic vibration reaming (UVR) was established to analyze its kinematic law. UVR experiments on CFRP/Ti stacks were carried out to study the influence of different ultrasonic amplitudes on reaming thrust and the influence of tool speed on thrust, dimensional accuracy, and surface roughness under optimal ultrasonic amplitude. The average thrust forces in UVR decreased by over 57% (Ti) and 40% (CFRP), respectively, compared to CR. The roughness of CFRP is reduced by 20% with UVR and 28% for titanium alloys. The surface topography of the holes is significantly improved by UVR. This work guides the manufacture of high-quality bolt holes for CFRP/Ti stacks.