ELID grinding of ceramic materials

Research on efficient, precision grinding techniques for ceramics is required because of the need to mass-produce ceramic parts. New grinding techniques for ceramics which employ fine bonded superabrasive wheels and high stiffness grinding machines have been designed to achieve high grinding efficiency and high quality ceramic parts. Ceramics are extremely hard to machine using conventional methods. Usually, mirror finishing of these hard brittle materials requires the use of diamond abrasives. Grinding in particular, compared with lapping and polishing, efficiently produces geometric form. This paper presents the electrolytic in-process dressing and sharpening of metal bond diamond wheels when grinding cylindrical parts, primarily for the bearing and automotive industry. Experimental results fi om the RIKEN Institute, Tokyo, Japan, and the Abrasive Micro-Machining Laboratory, Toledo, USA, are presented together with the investigation of the ground surface. As experimental tools, metal bonded grinding wheels were used with grit size between. 600 and 8,000. Conclusions regarding this technology, as well as the limitation of the process, are presented in the final part of the paper.