Modelling and analysis of material removal rate and surface roughness in wire-cut EDM of armour materials

The current work presents a comparative study of wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) of armour materials such as aluminium alloy 7017 and rolled homogeneous armour (RHA) steel using buckingham pi theorem to model the input variables and thermo-physical characteristics of WEDM on material removal rate (MRR) and surface roughness (Ra) of Al 7017 and RHA steel. The parameters of the model such as pulse-on time, flushing pressure, input power, thermal diffusivity and latent heat of vaporization have been determined through design of experiment methodology. Wear rate of brass wire increases with rise in input energy in machining Al 7017. The dependence of thermo-physical properties and machining variables on mechanism of MRR and Ra has been described by performing scanning electron microscope (SEM) study. The rise in pulse-on time from 0.85μs to 1.25μs causes improvement in MRR and deterioration of surface finish. The machined surface has revealed that craters are found on the machined surface. The propensity of formation of craters increases during WEDM with a higher current and larger pulse-on time.