Exploration of New Design Avenues for High Speed Ceramic Grinding

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Development of a cost-effective production finishing process is pivotal for commercial success of structural precision ceramic components. High-speed grinding of ceramics has emerged as a viable potential candidate for such finishing operation. However, unlike metals, ceramics are brittle and highly sensitive to process induced surface and sub-surface damages in the finished part. Process damage may be minimized by maintaining force/abrasive grit below a critical threshold. This, however, imposes an extremely small material removal rate that is an order of magnitude lower than that required for commercial viability. Current efforts focus on improving material removal rate under these constraints. This research project seeks to explore new design avenues, particularly for very high-speed grinding, above the current critical thresholds of depth of cut and feed/grit. The objectives of the research are: (1) to establish and experimentally validate a mechanistic model of material removal and associated damage evolution in high-speed machining; (2) to use the validated model to investigate the roles of two new design parameters: impulse/grit and intermittent unloading; and (3) to implement and investigate new design states in existing surface grinding facilities. The project will establish the potential of new design avenues for precision ceramic grinding that may deliver very high material removal rate while minimizing residual damage in the finished part. This can have significant impact on the efficiency and effectiveness of finished brittle materials including structural ceramic parts and optical components, as well as processing of silicon wafers for electronic applications.