Study of Parameters of

Ultrasonic machining
Submitted by:

Sumit Kumar
Samal Roll
No.-10503029
8th Semester,
B.TECH
Department of Mechanical
Engineering
National Institute Of Technology,
Rourkela

National Institute of Technology

Rourkela
CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the report entitled Study Of Parameters of Ultrasonic Machining
submitted by Sri Sumit Kumar Samal in the fuffillment of the requirements for the award of Bachelor of
Technology Degree in Mechanical Engineering at the National Institute of Technology, Rourkela (Deemed
University) is an authentic work carried out by him under my supervision and guidance.

To the best of my knowledge, the matter embodied in the thesis has not been submitted to any
other University / Institute for the award of any Degree or Diploma.

Date:

Dr. B.K.Nanda
National Institute of Technology
Rourkela-769008

National Institute of Technology

Rourkela

ACKNO WLEDGEMENT
We deem it a privilege to have been the student of Mechanical Engineering stream in National
Institute of Technology, ROURKELA
Our heartfelt thanks to Dr.B.K.Nanda, our project guide who helped us to bring out this project in
good manner with his precious suggestion and rich experience.
We take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks to our project guide for cooperation in
accomplishing this project with a satisfactory conclusion.

Sumit Kumar Samal Roll No.-10503029 8th

Semester, B.TECH Department of Mechanical
Engineering National Institute Of Technology,
Rourkela

CONTENTS

Page No

Abstract
Introduction
Chapter 1

6
GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1

Ultrasonic Process

1.2
1.3

Machining unit
Parameters of Ultrasonic Machining

10
14

1.4
1.5

Advantages
Disadvantages

16
17

1.6

Applications

17

Chapter 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1
2.2

Chapter 3

History and background of ultrasonic machining

What the future holds.

20
24

EXPERIMENTAL WORK
3.1

Machine setup in laboratory

26

3.2

Operation of machine

31

3.3

Material selection

33

3.4

Observation

34

Chapter 4

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

4.1

Result and discussion

37

4.2
4.3

Recommendations
Conclusion

38
39

References

40

ABSTRACT
The recent development of modern hi-tech industries has given rise to the
creation of a whole range of new materials. These include high strength, stainless
and heat resistant steels and alloys, titanium, ceramics, composites, and other
nonmetallic materials. These materials may not be suitable for traditional methods
of machining due to the chipping or fracturing of the surface layer, or even the
whole component, and results in a poor product quality.
Similarly, the creation of new materials often highlights some problems
unsolvable in a framework of traditional technologies. In certain cases these
problems are caused by the construction of the object and the requirements
particular to it As an example, in microelectronics, its often necessary to connect
some components without heating them or adding any intermediate layers. This
forbids the use of traditional methods such as soldering or welding.
Many of these and similar problems can be successfully solved using ultrasonic
technologies. The USD (Ultrasonic Drilling Machine) uses a novel drive
mechanism to transform the ultrasonic or vibrations of the tip of a horn into a
sonic hammering of a drill bit through an intermediate free- flying mass.

INTRODUCTION:

The use of ultrasonic for machining processes of hard and brittle

materials is known since early 1950s .The working process of an ultrasonic

machine is performed by subjecting its tool to a combination of two motions. A

driving motion is required to shape the w/p. A high frequency (ultrasonic)
vibration of specific direction, frequency and intensity is then superimposed.
Ultrasonic machines belong to the general class of vibration machines, but they
form a special group for the following reasons.
The first reason is determined by the peculiarities in the behavior of
materials and media in an ultrasonic field. Among these peculiarities is the drastic
change in elastic - plastic characteristics that include fragility, plasticity and
viscosity. The second reason is due to the peculiarities in the construction of major
parts of the machine. The main components are usually formed using vibrating bar
systems consisting of heterogeneous sections and using waveguides. The toolwork piece interaction leads to a nonlinearity in the vibration system in its
operating conditions.
In the following literature we have tried to consider the physical
foundations of ultrasonic processes among which we are laying focus on the
ultrasonic machining of brittle materials. The construction of the machine and its
elements depends critically on the process being performed by the tool. Therefore
the optimum parameters those are required for a specified set of operations are
needed to be studied in order to produce required quality of machining within the
permissible time and resources.

Chapter

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 ULTRASONIC PROCESS:Ultrasonic machining (USM) is the removal of material by the abrading
action of grit-loaded liquid slurry circulating between the workpiece and a tool
vibrating perpendicular to the workface at a frequency above the audible range.
Ultrasonic machining, also known as ultrasonic impact grinding, is a machining
operation in which an abrasive slurry freely flows between the workpiece and a
vibrating tool. It differs from most other machining operations because very little
heat is produced. The tool never contacts the workpiece and as a result the
grinding pressure is rarely more, which makes this operation perfect for
machining extremely hard and brittle materials, such as glass, sapphire, ruby,
diamond, and ceramics.

Diagram of ultrasonic cutting

process. 1) Workpiece; 2) tool; 3) abrasive
suspension.

Fig 1.1
The working process of an ultrasonic machine is performed when its tool interacts
with the workpiece or the medium to be treated. The tool is subjected to vibration
in a specific direction, frequency and intensity. The vibration is produced by a
transducer and is transmitted to the tool using a vibration system, often with a
change in direction and amplitude. The construction of the machine is dependent
on the process being performed by its tool.

The above figure shows the ultrasonic erosion process used to machine hard,
brittle materials. The workpiece 1 is placed under the face of the tool 2 which is
subjected to high frequency vibration perpendicular to the surface being
machined. Abrasive slurry is conveyed to the working zone between the face of
the tool and the surface being machined. The tool moves towards the workpiece
and is subjected to a static driving force P. repetitive impact of the tool on the
grains of the abrasive material, falling from the slurry onto the surface to be
treated , lead to the fracture of the workpiece material and to the creation of a
cavity with the shape mirror formed of the tool. The abrasive particles are
propelled or hammered against the workpiece by the transmitted vibrations of
the tool. The particles then microscopically erode or "chip away" at the
workpiece.
Generally the tool oscillates at a high frequency (about 20,000 cps) in an abrasive
slurry. The high speed oscillations of the tool drive the abrasive grain across a
small gap of about 0.020.10 mm against the workpiece.

Since Zerodur is ono of tho most expensive materials in the world. technologies, such as uftrasonic
machining, are used to prevent a part from turning into scrap by loose tolerances

Fig 1.2 Zerodur is a glass-ceramic that has an amorphous (vitreous)

component and a crystalline
component.

1.2 Machining unit for Ultrasonic machining

The above figure schematically depicts the major components of a typical

ultrasonic machining setup. The vibration exciter, a magnetostrictive transducer
1, is fixed to the body 2 of the acoustic head using the shoulder 3 and the thin
walled cup 4. The winding of the transducer is supplied with an alternating
current, at ultrasonic frequency, by the generator 5. The alternating magnetic
field induced by the current in the core of the transducer, which is made from
magnetostrictive material, is transformed into mechanical vibration in the core.
Its main elements are an electromagnet and a stack of nickel plates. The high
frequency power supply activates the stack of magnetostrictive material which
produces the vibratory motion of the tool. The tool amplitude of this vibration is
usually inadequate for cutting purposes, and hence the tool is connected to the
transducer by means of a concentrator which is simply a convergent wave guide
to produce the desired a mplitude at the tool end. The waveguide or concentrator
6 transmits this vibration to the tool 7. The concentrator takes the form of a bar
with a variable cross section. It is specially designed to transmit vibration from
the transducer, to the tool, with an increase in the amplitude. The selection of
frequency and amplitude is governed by practical considerations.

The workpiece 10 is placed under the tool, on a plate 8, in a tray 9, within an

abrasive slurry. The body of the acoustic head is adjusted to the base's guides 11
and is subjected to a static force P which drives the tool in the direction necessary
to machine the workpiece.
The magnetostrictive material is brazed to a connecting body of monel metal. A
removable tool holder is fastened to the connecting body and is made of monel
metal or stainless steel. All these parts, including the tool, act as one elastic
body, transmitting the vibrations to the tip of the tool.
The abrasive slurry is circulated by pumping, and it requires cooling to remove
the generated heat to prevent it from boiling in the gap and causing the
undesirable cavitation effect caused by high temperature.

Tool holder
The tool holder transfers the vibrations and, therefore, it must have adequate
fatigue strength. With a good tool design, an amplitude gain of 6 over the stack
can be obtained. Generally, the shape of tool holder is cylindrical, or a modified
cone with the centre of mass of the tool on the centre line of the tool holder. It
should be free from nicks, scratches and tool marks to reduce fatigue failures
caused by the reversal of stresses.

Tool materials and tool size

The tool material employed in USM should be tough and ductile. However, metals
like aluminum, give very short life. Low-carbon steel and stainless steels give
superior performance. The figure below shows a qualitative relationship between
the material removal rate and lambda i.e. workpiece/tool hardness.

The mass length of the tool is very important. Too great a mass absorbs much of
the ultrasonic energy, reducing the efficiency of machining. Long tool causes
overstressing of the tool. Most of the USM tools are less than 25 mm long. I n

practice the slenderness ratio of the tool should not exceed 20. The under sizing
of the tool depends coupon the grain size of the abrasive. It is sufficient if the tool
size is equal to the hole size minus twice the size of the abrasives.

Abrasive slurrv

Boron carbide is by far the fastest cutting abrasive and it is quite commonly used.
Aluminium oxide and silicon carbide are also employed. Boron carbide is very
costly and its about 29 times higher than that of aluminium oxide or silicon
carbide. The abrasive is carried in a slurry of water with 30-60% by volume of the
abrasives. When using large-area tools, the concentration is held low to avoid
circulation difficulties.
The most important characteristic of the abrasive that highly influences the
material removal rate and surface finish of the machining is the grit size or grain
size of the abrasive. It has been experimentally determined that a maximum rate
of machining is achieved when the grain size becomes compa rable to the tool
amplitude. Grit sizes of 200-400 are used for roughing operations and a grit size
of 800-1000 for finishing.

TRANSDUCERS
The ultrasonic vibrations are produced by the transducer. The transducer is driven
by suitable signal generator followed by power amplifier. The transducer for US M
works on the following principle

Piezoelectric effect

Magnetostrictive effect

Electrostrictive effect

Among all the above types of transducers Magnetostrictive transducers are most
popular and robust amongst all.

HORN OR CONCENTRATOR
The

horn or concentrator is a wave-guide, which amplifies and concentrates the

vibration to the tool from the transducer. The horn or concentrator can be of
different shape like

Tapered or conicalExponential

Stepped

Machining of tapered or stepped horn is much easier as compared to the

exponential one.

Fig 1.5
Different Horns used in USM

SALIENT FEATURES OF THE ULTRASONIC MACHINING

SETUP:> The machines have a power rating of 0.2-2.5 kW
> The amplitude of vibration is of the order of 0.01 to 0.06 mm
> Frequency varies from a lower limit of 15,000 Hz (hearing range) to an
upper limit of about 25,000 Hz (imposed by the requirement of cooling of
the transducer)
> The transducer amplitude is limited by the strength of the magnetostrictive
material.
> A refrigerating cooling system is used to cool the abrasive slurry to a
temperature of 5-60C
> The tool is smaller than the size of the cavity by a few hundredths of a
millimeter and made of low-carbon or stainless steel to the shape of the
desired cavity.
> Tool size = Hole size - 2*(Size of the abrasives)
> Grit size 200-400 for roughing & 800- 1000 for finishing
> Slenderness ratio of the tool should not exceed 20

1.3 Parameters of Ultrasonic Machining:The ultrasonic vibration machining method is an efficient cutting technique for difficult-to- machine
materials. It is found that the USM mechanism is influenced by these important parameters.
> Amplitude of tool oscillation(a0)
> Frequency of tool oscillation(f)
> Tool material
> Type of abrasive
> Grain size or grit size of the abrasives - d 0
> Feed force - F
> Contact area of the tool - A
> Volume concentration of abrasive in water slurry - C
> Ratio of workpiece hardness to tool hardness; A=O w/at

Physical parameters
Abrasive

Boron

Grit size(d0)

silicon carbide
100 - 800

Frequency of vibration (f)

19 - 25 kHz

Amplitude of vibration (a)

15 - 50 pm

Tool material

Soft steel titanium alloy

Wear ratio

Tungsten 1.5:1 and glass 100:1

Gap overcut

0.02-0.1 mm

carbide,

aluminium

oxide

and

Table 1.1
Material removal rate
USM can be applied to machine nearly all materials; however it is not economical to use USM for materials
of hardness less than 50 HRC. Generally the workpiece materials are of stainless steel, cobalt-base heatresistant steels, germanium, glass, ceramic, carbide, qua rtz and semiconductors. It is highly useful in the
machining of materials that cannot be machined by any conventional machining process that are ceramic
and glass.

Material removal rate is inversely proportional to the cutting area of the tool. Tool vibrations also affect the
removal rate. The type of abrasive, its size and concentration also directly affect the MRR
Material removal in USM appears to proceed by a complex mechanism involving both fracture and plastic
deformation to va rying degrees, depending on several process variables.

Fig 1.6
Effect of machining parameters on MRR

B4C
Al O
2 3

1.4 Advantages:> UM effectively machines precise features in hard, brittle materials such as

glass

engineered ceramics

CVD SiC- Chemical Vapor Deposition Silicon

Carbide

quartz

single crystal materials

PCD - Polycrystalline diamond

ferrite

graphite

glassy carbon

composites

piezoceramics

Square cavities,
round through holes
and crossing beams
in a 4-in. borosilicate
wafer.

Fig 1.7

> A nearly limitless number of feature shapes including round, square and odd- shaped thru-holes
and cavities of varying depths, as well as OD-ID features can be machined with high quality and
consistency.
> Aspect ratios as high as 25-to-1 are possible, depending on the material type and feature size.
> The machining of parts with preexisting machined features or metallization is possible without
affecting the integrity of the preexisting features or surface finish of the workpiece.
> USM machined surfaces exhibit a good surface integrity and the compressive stress induced in the
top layer enhances the fatigue strength of the workpiece.
> The quality of an ultrasonic cut provides reduced stress and a lower likelihood of fractures that
might lead to device or application failure over the life of the product.
> Unlike other non-traditional processes such as laser beam, and electrical discharge machining, etc.,
ultrasonic machining does not thermally damage the workpiece or appear to introduce significant
levels of residual stress, which is important for the survival of brittle materials in service.

Fig 1.8 A UMmachined square

hole in 0.0175-in.
thick

glass.

The

machined feature
exhibits
edge,
natural

clean

and

the

corner

radius is < 0.005

in.

Fig 1.9 Honeycomb

structure machined
on the back of a
silicon mirror for
NASA.

> Unlike conventional machining methods, ultrasonic machining produces little or no sub-surface
damage and no heat-affected zone.
> This machining process is nonthermal, nonchemical, and nonelectrical. It does not change the
metallurgical, chemical or physical properties of the workpiece.

1.5

DISADVANTAGES

> Ultrasonic machines have a relatively low mrr. Material removal rates are quite low, usually less
than 50 mm3/min.
> The abrasive slurry also "machines" the tool itself, thus causing high rate of tool wear , which in
turn makes it very difficult to hold close tolerances.
> The slurry may wear the wall of the machined hole as it passes back towards the surface, which
limits the accuracy, particularly for small holes.
> The machining area and the depth of cut are quite restricted

1.6

APPLICATIONS

Ultrasonic machining is ideal for certain kinds of materials and applications. Brittle materials,
particularly ceramics and glass, are typical candidates for ultrasonic machining. Ultrasonic
machining is capable of machining complex, highly detailed shapes and can be machined to very
close tolerances (0.01 mm routinely) with properly designed machines and generators. Complex
geometric shapes and 3-D contours can be machined with relative ease in brittle materials. Multiple
holes, sometimes hundreds, can be drilled simultaneously into very hard materials with great
accuracy.

Fig 1.10

Channels and holes ultrasonically machined in a polycrystalline Silicon wafer.

Coining operations for materials like glass ,ceramics, etc.

Fig 1.11
Coin with grooving carried out with USM
Threading by appropriately rotating and translating the workpiece/tool.
Rotary ultrasonic machining uses an abrasive surfaced tool that is rotated and vibrated
simultaneously. The combination of rotating and vibrating action of the tool makes rotary ultrasonic
machining ideal for drilling holes and performing ultrasonic profile milling in ceramics and brittle
engineered materials that are difficult to machine with traditional processes.
Ultrasonic machining can be used to form and redress graphite electrodes for electrical discharge
machining. It is especially suited to the forming and redressing of intricately shaped and detailed
configurations requiring sharp internal corners and excellent surface finishes.
It is particularly useful in microdrilling holes of upto 0.1 mm.

Fig 1.12 SEM of a 0.64mm hole ultrasonically machined in an alumina substrate

Chapter

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 History and background of Ultrasonic Machining

Hard solids are invariably stiff, strength and wear resistant. On the other hand,
hard solids typically exhibit statistically variable brittle fracture and high
sensitivity to machining damage. When loaded with tensile stresses, hard solids
pass from elastic to fracture behavior and invariably fail by crack extension. Thus,
hard solids are usually brittle, i.e., they have small capacity to convert elastic
energy into plastic deformation at room temperature (Dieter, 1981).
Brittle and hard solids can be classified in four groups: minerals, polycrystalline
ceramic aggregates (traditional and advanced), single crystals and amorphous
glasses. Minerals are frequently used as raw materials in the production of a large
range of products such as abrasives, gemstones, metals and alloys, single
crystals synthetically produced on a commercial scale, etc. Traditional ceramics
and glasses are extensively used to manufacture many products currently used in
daily life. Advanced ceramics have been widely adopted as functional as well as
structural engineering materials (Chiang et al. 1997). Functional ceramics and
single crystals are extensively used in the production of electric, electronic,
magnetic and optical components for high performance systems such as
transducers, resonators, actuators and sensors (Fraden, 1996). The past
twodecades have seen a tremendous resurgence in the use of advanced ceramics
in structural applications such as roller and sliding bearings, adiabatic diesel
engines, cutting tools, etc. Conventional forming and sintering processes of
ceramic powders do not necessarily give the high dimensional accuracy and the
good surface quality required for functional and structural components. Thus,
precision machining technologies have been developed for the manufacture of
cost- effective and quality-assured precision parts produced by brittle and hard
solids.
Ultrasonic machining offers a solution to the expanding need for machining brittle
materials such as single crystals, glasses and polycrystalline ceramics, and for
increasing complex operations to provide intricate shapes and workpiece profiles.
This machining process is non-thermal, non-chemical, creates no change in the
microstructure, chemical or physical properties of the workpiece and offers
virtually stress-free machined surfaces. It is therefore used extensively in
manufacturing hard and brittle materials that are difficult to cut by other
conventional methods. The actual cutting is performed either by abrasive
particles suspended in a fluid, or by a rotating diamond-plated tool. These
variants are known respectively as stationary ultrasonic machining and rotary
ultrasonic machining (RUM).
Rotary ultrasonic machining (RUM) is a hybrid machining process that
combines the material removal mechanisms of diamond grinding with ultrasonic
machining (USM), resulting in higher material removal rates (MRR) than those
obtained by either diamond grinding or USM alone. Experi ments with calcium
aluminum silicate and magnesia-stabilized zirconia have shown that the MRR
obtained with RUM is six to 10 times higher than that of a conventional grinding
process under similar conditions, and it is about 10 times faster than USM. It is

also easier to drill deep holes with RUM than with USM, and the hole accuracy is
improved. Other advantages of this process include a superior surface finish and
low tool pressure.

Fig 2.1

In rotary ultrasonic machining, a rotating core drill with metal-bonded diamond abrasives is
ultrasonically vibrated in the axial direction while the spindle is fed toward the workpiece at a
constant pressure.

Stationary (or conventional) ultrasonic machining (USM) accomplishes

the removal of material by the abrading action of a grit-loaded slurry, circulating
between the workpiece and a tool that is vibrated at small amplitude. The form
tool itself does not abrade the workpiece; the vibrating tool excites the abrasive
grains in the flushing fluid, causing them to gently and uniformly wear away the
material, leaving a precise reverse form of the tool shape. The uniformity of the
sonotrode-tool vibration limits the process to forming small shapes typically under
100 mm in diameter.

Fig 2.2

In ultrasonic machining, the tool, which is shaped conversely to the desired hole or cavity, oscillates
at high frequency, typically 20 kHz, and is fed into the workpiece by a constant force.

The USM system includes the sonotrode-toll assembly, the generator, the grit
system and the operator controls. A schematic representation of the USM set-up
is shown in Fig. The sonotrodetool assembly consists of a transducer, a booster
and a sonotrode. The electronic generator powers the transducer, creating
impulses that occur at a range of 19.5 to 20.5 kHz, and automatically adjusts the
output frequency to mach the resonant frequency of the tool, which varies
according to the sonotrode shape and material. The transducer converts the
electrical pulses into vertical stroke. This vertical stroke is transferred to the
booster, which may amplify or suppress the stroke amount. The modified stroke is
then relayed to the sonotrode-tool assembly. The amplitude along the face of the
tool typically falls in a 20to 50 range. The vibration amplitude is usually equal
to the diameter of the abrasive grit used.
The grit system supplies a slurry of water and abrasive grit, usually silicon or
boron carbide, to the cutting area. In addition to providing abrasive particles to
the cut, the slurry also cools the sonotrode and removes particles and debris from
the cutting area. The overcut produced with USM is a function of the abrasive
particle size, as are the surface finish and the material removal rates (Komaraiah
et al. 1988, Thoe et al. 1998). The operator controls provide inputs for manual or
automatic sequencing of operations. Controls include variable cutting force, ram
position, speed control of the ram movement, cycle timing, retract distance and
flush timing.
Electric po\vei generator
transducer lnecuauical amplmei

sonotrode
puinp

svorkpiece

slu
i

t lik

Fig 2.3

Schematic representation of the USM apparatus

From the tribological point of view, USM can be classified as a three-body abrasive
wear. The material removal is assured by direct hammering and impact action of
the abrasive particles against the surface of the workpiece (Shawn, 1956; Kainth
et al., 1979). Soundararajan and Radhakrishnan (1986) showed that direct
hammering of the abrasive particles on the workpiece by the tool, resulting in
material removal and particle crushing, may contributes up to 80 % of the stock
removal in brittle solids such as glass. Cavitation effects from the abrasive slurry
and chemical action associated with the fluid employed have been reported as

minor material removal mechanisms. Material removal rate, surface finish and
machining accuracy are influenced by various operational parameters such as
amplitude and frequency of ultrasonic oscillations, static load applied on the
sonotrode, tool design, hardness and size of abrasive particles.

2.2 FUTURE OF ULTRASONIC MACHINING:

Unlike applications in medicine, inspection and parts cleaning where ultrasonic
(high frequency sound) waves are applied directly, ultrasonic machining is a
metalcutting process that is facilitated by ultrasonic technology. The result is a
system that can machine brittle materials such as ceramics, glass, silicon,
graphite, composite materials and precious stones. Increasingly, workpieces
made from these "advanced materials" are being specified in the medical,
automotive, aerospace and optics industries. It is the properties of these
materialslow weight, chemical and thermal stability and wear resistance that
make them attractive for design engineers. But the very properties that make the
composition of these materials attractive for selected applications make them a
bear to machine with conventional metal cutting processes.
Engineered ceramic materials exhibit a host of very attractive properties for
today's scientists, design engineers and R&D engineers. Properties of interest
include high hardness, high thermal resistance, chemical inertness, tailored
electrical conductivity, high strength- to-weight ratio and longer life expectancy.
Ultrasonic machining (USM) is of particular interest in the machining of both
conductive and non-conductive, brittle, complicated shape materials such as
diamonds, titanium and engineering ceramics. Rupinder and Aspinwall [1,2]
introduced a review for the fundamental principles of steady- state ultrasonic
machining. The material removal mechanisms involved the effects of operating
parameters on material removal rate, tool wear rate, and work piece surface
finish of titanium and its alloys for application in manufacturing industry.
Inventions been done that relates primarily to ultrasonic machining which
involves vibrating the pa rt to be machined rather than a tool of the machine. To
impart vibrations to the part to be machined it is secured to a metallic part for
transmitting vibrations which is in turn connected to a transducer for converting
electrical oscillations into mechanical vibrations. An abrasive is supplied to the
space between the opposed operative faces of the tool and the part to be
machined. The invention also relates to an installation for carrying out the
method which includes a machining enclosure and a recycling assembly for
recycling the abrasive liquid mixture which is used during the process.
A new method for micro ultrasonic machining (MUSM) has been developed. In
order to obtain high-precision tool rotation, the spindle mechanism employed in
micro-EDM machines was introduced. Since the mechanism does not allow the
vibration of tools, the workpiece was vibrated during machining. This setup has
been successfully used in machining micro holes as small as 5pm in diameter in
quartz glass and silicon. In this machining range, high tool wear posed a problem.
To solve this problem, a sintered diamond (SD) tool was tested and was proven to
be effective.

Chapter

EXPERIMENTAL WORK

3.1 Machine setup in Laboratorv:-

Fig 3.1
Schematic view of an Ultrasonic Machine
The basic mechanical structure of an USM is very similar to a drill press.
However, it has additional features to carry out USM of brittle work
material. The workpiece is mounted on a plate where it is clamped to the
plate by the help of two side plates that can be secured by allen bolts. The
plate is situated inside a basin that has a supply for the abrasive slurry

and a drainage that clears completes the circulation of the slurry into the
slurry tank below. The table or the plate where the workpiece is fixed is
fixed and cannot be moved. However the
tool holder along with the cabinet that holds the transducer can be
manually lowered or raised to accommodate workpieces of different sizes.
The typical elements of an USM are (Fig. 3.1)

Slurry delivery and return system

Feed mechanism to provide a downward feed force on the tool during

machining
The transducer, which generates the ultrasonic vibration

The horn or concentrator, which mechanically amplifies the vibration to the

required amplitude of 15 - 50 pm and accommodates the tool at its tip.

HMI-Human Computer Interface; that displays the several options and

modes of operations.

Amplitude regulating power system to control the generator for the a

mplitude.

Fig 3.2
GENERATOR CONTROLLER

USM in the labratory

GENERATOR CONTROLLER CU -1

Fig 3.3
Generator controller
The unit shown above is required to change and regulate the para meters
like frequency and amplitude of the USM. Along with that it also monitors
the powerload of the machine while the machining process. As it shows
above there is an option for tuning the concentrator in two frequencies
that are 20 kHz and 36 kHz. The amplitude can be varied from 70 % to a
100% of the total permissible amplitude. The rightmost panel shows the
power load on the machine that va ries from 0% to 100% of the total
power capacity. As is shown in the above figure the machine has power
wattage of 3000W.

TRANSDUCER AND CONCENTRATOR with TOOL HOLDER AND TOOL

Fig 3.4
The above figure shows the assembly of the transducer, concentrator, tool
holder and the tool. The titanium alloy transducer is connected to the
concentrator that is made up of aluminium. The titanium alloy transducer
is advantageous because of being corrosion resistance and due to its high
resistance to electrical and mechanical noise of pumps etc. The
concentrator is under constant mechanical force that causes it to be
heated up quite quickly. Here comes the application of aluminium as the
right material for a concentrator. A cooling system is placed near the
transducer to prevent excessive heating by supplying pressurized air
around the transducer cabinet.

SLURRY TANK AND MOTOR ASSEMBLY

Fig 3.5

Some initial problems were faced in the circulation system, caused due to
the entrance of the chips from the workpiece into the slurry tank through
the drainage system, connected to the basin that houses the workpiece
table or plate.
The above problem was taken care of by adjusting the pipe from the basin
to the tank and fastening a net of hole size of about 2mm to the delivery
pipe of the tank. The slurry was then filtered and replaced in the tank for
usage.

HMI-HUMAN COMPUTER INTERFACE

As the name suggests the HMI is the interface for operations on the ultrasonic machine. It has got
a graphics user interface that displays the various options and modes that carry out and tweak the
operations on the machine.

3.2 OPERATION OF MACHINE

Basically the machine is designed to drill into ceramic or glass plate.
The machine employs a Panasonic make Ac servo motor (Model:
MSM042P1G) and driver (Model: MSD043P1E) for very fine motion.

CONTINUOUS
MODE

TIME MODE
INPUT/OUTPUT
STATUS

MANUALMODE

Fig 3.6
Main screen
Machine can be operated in two modes namely
1. Auto mode
2. Manual mode

1. Manual mode :
The following screen appears by pressing the manual mode button

MANUAL MODE
MOTOR UP
MOTOR DOWN

UX/SLURRY OFF
Power

:___________%

BACK

Fig 3.7
Manual mode screen
In this mode motor can be moved manually up or down by up and down buttons
respectively provided in the screen. The point to be noted here is that the
switches are inch type and therefore to keep the motor ON user has to
continuously press this key.
Motor can move down till lower sensor turns on. If lower sensor is on then motor
will not come down. Similarly for the upward movement. Also we can switch on
and off ultrasonic power in this mode. Once this key is pressed ultrasonic and
cooling coil will turn on a nd on pressing again it switches it off.

Tool material

Titanium alloy

Workpiece material

Ceramic tiles

Composition of w/p

Stoneware

Workpiece thickness

8.30 mm

Abrasive slurry used

Aluminum oxide-ADO3

Concentration

20% by volume in water

Grit size

200

Frequency

20 kHz

Parameter varied

Amplitude
Table 3.1

The tool is attached to the transducer through the concentrator that acts as a
wave guide to produce the desired amplitude at the tool end. Achieving the
maximum amplitude of tool vibration is necessary for the ultrasonic process to be
effective. For this reason the vibration system is adjusted to operate within its
resonant range. The system is excited at a frequency that coincides with one of its
resonant frequencies. Adjustment of the system's parameters is usually made
under idle conditions; it is assumed that the influence of the working loads on the
resona nt frequency of the system is negligible.
The vibrating system is thereby preset to a frequency of 20 kHz.
The slurry is cleaned from any type of impurities and fed into the slurry
tank along with water. The mixture is prepared such that we get a
concentration of 20% by volume of the abrasive.
The workpiece is selected and weighed before fixing it to the table with
the help of plates and allen screws.
The compressor motor is turned on to collect the air for the cooling of
the transducer.
The machine is started in the manual mode and operated on the
workpiece for one minute with varying amplitudes. The results found are
tabulated in the following table.

Initial mass of w/p in

Final mass of w/p in

grams

grams
40.035

40.022

40.076

40.035

40.022

39.785

39.785

39.770

Amplitude
%
70
80
90
100

Mass of material
removed(in grams)
00.013
00.041
00.037
0.015

Table 3.2

A graph is plotted according to the above

readings. The machined part is shown as
below:

Fig 3.8
Workpiece after being machined

Fig 3.9

Department of Mechanical Engineering,

National Institute of Technology, Rourkela

Page 39

Chapter

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

4.1 RESULT
From the plotted graph we can see that the results are highly erratic whereas
actual practice the MRR should be increasing with the increase in the amplitude
for a given set of other constant parameters. The workpiece finally cracked after
taking 6 readings.
We can also see a certain degree of tool vibration. The vibration was found to be
of the order of 1.09 mm.

Fig 4.1

Cracked workpiece

DISCUSSION
The following may be the reasons for the above inconsistent readings:
1

The ceramic tiles used were not having an even surface and contained
ridges. When the tool landed on those ridges, the surface area of

impact was less and therefore the material removal was much lower.
1

During the machining process the extremely high impact load produced by
the tool caused the chips to break away from the periphery of the
workpiece that were in contact with the worktable. This further reduces
the final weight of the workpiece that affects the reading for the material

removed.
The workpiece used should be of plain area of impact without any
discontinuity. It helps in distributing the load thereby acting as a suitable
experimental material without breaking.

The allen screws should be secured so that they are just sufficient to hold
the workpiece in place without any vibration. This ensures the workpiece
is intact and doesn't break due to excess ive tightening.

The boundaries of the workpiece can be treated with certain resins or

adhesives that prevent the chipping away of the workpiece from the
boundaries where no machining takes place.

In the above literature an effort has been made to fa miliarize with the basic
layouts of the common Ultrasonic Machining setup, the various elements that
constitute the overall build, and the basic parameters on which the machining
characteristics depend.
Preliminary USM experiments carried out pointed out the various regions of
improvement in the experimental setup. Absence of any feed force measuring
device and the necessity to tune the vibrating system rules out the possibility of
any further experiments upon them. The slurry concentration could be varied to
find out the effect on the parameter. Different materials can be used for a given
abrasive of varying size to find out the best option for machining a given
workpiece. The effects of tool vibration frequency, tool vibration amplitude and
feed force along with the other process parameters in the USM method were
studied theoretically. Also it was observed that care has to be taken to treat the
w/p before machining for accurate readings and the slurry tank must be cleaned
along with the slurry to keep it free from impurities that may jam the slurry
circulation system.
The overall ultrasonic machining process is studied and an effort is made to carry
out rigorous experiments in order to reach at the optimal values that could result
in the required improvement in machining characteristics mandatory for smooth
operation of the setup and satisfactory results.

# REFERENCES

[1] . Effect of machining parameters in ultrasonic vibration cutting - Chandra

Nath, M.
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Guzzo and A. H. Shinohara - Departamento de Engenharia Mecanica

Universidade Federal de Pernambuco Cidade Universitaria & A. A. Raslan Faculdade de Engenharia Mecanica Universidade Federal de Uberlandia
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of

Transducer

Using

Titanium-Based

Hydrothermal Lead
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