Parametric analysis and modeling of electrochemical jet machining of titanium alloy

Electrochemical jet machining of titanium alloy is presented in this paper, where the effects of major process parameters including pulse frequency and duty cycle on cavity dimensions and material removal rate were investigated and analyzed through experiments. A parametric model was also developed in this study for predicting the material removal rate and cavity profile. Although the use of high open voltage together with high pulse frequency and large duty cycle tended to produce a wide and deep cavity, a non-circular cavity with pitting holes formed around the cavity’s edge was usually obtained as a result. The open voltage of 25 V and duty cycle of 50% were suggested for preventing the formation of surface pitting and keeping the fabricated cavity to be a circular shape. In addition, the parametric model developed in this study was able to predict the material removal rate and cavity depth with a well agreement compared to the experiments. Regarding the experimental findings and model, the critical current density and average specific energy required for removing the titanium alloy by the electrochemical jet machining process were 6.2 A/cm² and 4000 J/mm³, respectively.