Comparison of MRR of different WEDM-machined materials

Abstract

Wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM) is an unconventional machining technology which is widely used in all industries. Due to the increased energy demand of WEDM, there is an effort to reduce machining times and thus maximise the material removal rate (MRR). Thus, this study aimed to perform the design of experiment to study the effect of WEDM machining parameters on the resulting MRR, topography, morphology, and subsurface condition of the produced samples. The materials investigated included titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4 V, aluminium alloy 7475-T7351, nickel alloy Nimonic C 263, wear-resistant Hadfield steel, copper alloy Ampcoloy 35, pure molybdenum 99.99, and high-entropy alloy FeCoCrMnNi. The highest MRR values were achieved for 7475-T7351. Nimonic, Hadfield steel, Ampcoloy, and molybdenum materials reached similar MRR values and the lowest MRR values were studied for Ti-6Al-4 V and FeCoCrMnNi materials. Cracks were visible on all samples of Ti-6Al-4 V, molybdenum and aluminium alloy 7475-T7351, while burnt cavities were found in Hadfield steel.