Non-traditional Machining Processes

Why non-traditional processes?

• Demanding new requirements
  • WP materials
    • Hard
    • Too flexible
    • Undesirable temperature rise
  • Shapes
    • Complex shapes
  • Advanced
    • Output: Surface finish, tolerance, ultra precision and accuracy, speed etc.
    • Products: Miniatures and inaccessible areas
• Limitation so traditional processes

Extra requirements (not necessarily achieved by non-traditional processes)

• High MRR
• High production even with hard-to-process materials
• Low cost of production
• Machining atoms or molecules

Characteristics

• Independent of material strength and hardness
• Dependent on electrical, thermal, and chemical material properties
• Different energies drive machining in different processes
• Generally low MRR but higher quality
• Generally high initial and operating cost

Classification

• According to energy used
  • Mechanical
    • USM
    • AJM
    • WJM
    • AWJM
    • Finishing processes...
  • Thermoelectric
  • Electrochemical/Chemical
• According to workpiece material properties
  • Electrically conducting
    • ECM
    • EDM
    • EBM
  • Both electrically conducting and non-conducting
    • USM
    • AJM
    • WJM
    • AWJM
    • LBM
  • Thermally conductive/reflective
    • LBM
    • Plasma
  • Non-magnetic materials
    • Magnetorheological Finishing (MRF)
    • Abrasive Flow Machining (AFM)
    • Magnetorheological Abrasive Flow Machining (MRAFF)