Experimental simulation of the efficiency of high speed grinding wheel cleaning

The grinding of certain materials such as ductile material which are hard to grind implies particular conditions of work. Maintaining the cutting ability of the wheel is necessary and wheel cleaning is one of these conditions. In this paper, the parameters which are influential in maintaining a clean wheel are identified. A cleaning criterion is proposed to estimate the efficiency of the cleaning process. Using an experimental setup, the significant of the influence of the nozzle position, the flow rate and pressure, the boundary layer of air around the rotating wheel and the particle rate contained in the fluid are assessed. It is observed too that the fluid temperature has no significant effect. Lastly, the best method to clean a wheel when high speed grinding is discussed. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.