Cemented Carbide Machining Strategies

Release date:

2021-07-22

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From the perspective of electrical discharge machining principles, any conductive material can be processed—and low-loss machining is also achievable for all of them, including cemented carbides. However, according to current qualitative theories on low-loss machining, when the current density is selected at or below 0.01 A/μs, an adsorption of carbon occurs, leading to the desired effect of low-loss machining. To enhance machining productivity, one can increase the amplitude of the no-load voltage, thereby expanding the spark gap under given surface roughness conditions, improving chip removal efficiency, and simultaneously reducing the pulse pause time accordingly.
  Using the pulse parameters listed in the table above can yield favorable low-loss process metrics.
  Tips for Reducing Surface Cracks
  Cemented carbides have relatively low thermal conductivity. For instance, tungsten-cobalt cemented carbides exhibit a thermal conductivity range of 58.62 to 87.92 W/(m•K), while tungsten-cobalt-titanium alloys typically show a thermal conductivity between 16.75 and 62.8 W/(m•K). To prevent cracking, it’s crucial not to select machining parameters with excessively wide pulse widths. For example, when transistor pulse power supplies were used to machine cemented carbides—with a pulse width of 800 μs and a peak current of 1.5 A—the result was the formation of severe reticulated cracks on the machined surface.
  Therefore, during rough machining, most processes employ a relatively small pulse width (e.g., below 100 μs) combined with a higher peak current, which helps keep the heat-affected layer from electrical discharge machining thin. Even if cracks do occur, their depth remains shallow. Then, in the finishing stage, the same approach—using a small pulse width and elevated peak current—is applied again, effectively removing nearly all of the shallow cracks left over from rough machining. By carefully selecting these parameters, not only can cracking be prevented, but the surface finish quality is also significantly improved.
  Cracks significantly affect the service life of cold forging dies, so cold forging dies that have undergone EDM finishing must be further polished to completely remove the heat-affected layer created by the EDM process. Otherwise, the die may crack during use.

 

  

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