Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14

https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-018-1520-y

REVIEW

Materials used for sinking EDM electrodes: a review

Tiago Czelusniak1 · Camila Fernandes Higa1 · Ricardo Diego Torres1 · Carlos Augusto Henning Laurindo1 ·
José Mário Fernandes de Paiva Júnior2 · Armin Lohrengel3 · Fred Lacerda Amorim1

Received: 18 June 2018 / Accepted: 30 November 2018 / Published online: 7 December 2018
© The Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering 2018

Abstract
Over the years, sinking electrical discharge machining has become one of the most important production technologies to
manufacture very accurate three-dimensional complex components on any electrically conductive material. This article
reports a literature review on the diversity of conventional and non-conventional materials that are used or have potential to
be used as EDM electrodes. In addition, additive manufacturing of EDM electrodes are also reviewed.

Keywords  Sinking electrical discharge machining · EDM electrodes · Materials for electrodes · Additive manufacturing
List of symbols VWR Volumetric wear ratio
îe Discharge current (A) AM Additive manufacturing
t0 Pulse interval time (μs) RP Rapid prototyping
pin Dielectric inlet pressure (Pa) RT Rapid tooling
td Ignition delay time (μs) RM Rapid manufacturing
te Discharge duration (μs) SL Stereolithography
ti Pulse duration (μs) SLS Selective laser sintering
tp Pulse cycle time (μs) SLM Selective laser melting
ue Discharge voltage (V)
ûi Open-circuit voltage (V)
Ve Electrode wear rate ­(mm3/min) 1 Introduction
Vw Material removal rate ­(mm3/min)
We Discharge energy (J) Electrical discharge machining (EDM) has become one of
the most important production technologies to manufacture
Abbreviations
very accurate three-dimensional complex components on
EDM Electrical discharge machining
any electrically conductive material [1]. Examples include
MRR Material removal rate
precision machining of hardened steels, carbides and
TWR​ Tool wear rate
ceramic materials [2].
ADI Austempered ductile iron
The cost of a part manufactured by EDM is essentially
determined by the electrode cost, which consists of the raw
Technical Editor: Márcio Bacci da Silva, Ph.D. material cost and the tool production. The contribution of
the electrode cost to the total EDM operation cost can be
* Fred Lacerda Amorim more than 70%. The electrode production is a major cost and
fred.amorim@pucpr.br
time spent in the EDM process cycle, which can account for
1
Mechanical Engineering Graduate Program – PPGEM, over 50% of the conventional machining costs [3].
Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná – PUCPR, The thermo-physical properties of the electrode, such as
Av. Imaculada Conceição, 1155 ‑ Prado Velho, thermal and electrical conductivity, thermal expansion and
Curitiba 80.215 901, Brazil
heat needed to vaporize from room temperature, melting
2
McMaster Manufacturing Research Institute, McMaster and boiling temperature have a considerable influence on the
University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
EDM process performance in terms of material removal rate,
3
IMW‑ Fritz‑Süchting‑Institut für Maschinenwesen, electrode wear and surface integrity of the workpiece [4].
Technische Universität Clausthal – TUClausthal, Robert
Koch Strasse, 32, 38678 Clausthal‑Zellerfeld, Germany

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Page 2 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14

Thus, when selecting an electrode material, one has to CONDUCTOR SEMI-CONDUCTOR INSULATOR
keep in mind the properties that influence the EDM process.
Since EDM is a thermal process, the influence of thermal EDM FIELD
properties on the removal volume is significant. Higher ther-
mal conductivity will result in a lower surface temperature of

conductivy necessary for EDM

the electrode. Thus, materials with higher thermal conduc-
tivity are preferable because the electrode wear decreases.
When the surface temperature of the electrode is not over

Ag
the boiling or melting point, electrode material removal does

diamond
graphite

Al 2O3
not occur, so materials with higher melting point are suitable

Si
Fe
as tool electrodes [5].
Electrical properties are also important, as the current is
responsible for the material erosion. Higher electrical con- 8 4 2 0 -2 -4 -6 -8 -10 -12 -14 -16
10 S/cm 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10
ductivity (low electrical resistivity) generally leads to lower
tool wear. In addition, although the EDM process does not
involve mechanical forces, the sparks produced act in a vio- Fig. 1  Electric conductivity necessary for EDM [7]
lent way, inducing stresses in a microscopic scale [6]. Thus,
the structural integrity of the electrode is a significant fac-
tor determining the electrode performance. Other important effect produced when spatial and discrete discharges occur
aspect in selecting an electrode material is the machinabil- between two electrically conductive materials. According
ity, which is also related to the cost of it. If a material is too to this theory, an electrical discharge between the tool elec-
difficult to machine, or the costs are too high, then it is not trode and the workpiece proceeds in four successive steps,
suitable for EDM, and the applications are very limited [4]. as presented in Fig. 2:
This article presents a review on a variety of materials
that are used or have potential to be used as EDM electrodes. 1. The ignition phase;
The sections were divided in the following way: initially 2. Formation of the plasma channel;
the theoretical EDM background is presented, followed by 3. Melting and evaporation of a small amount of the work-
a review on the common materials used as EDM electrodes, piece material;
describing their properties, application cases, advantages 4. Ejection of the liquid molten material.
and disadvantages. The next section reviews the use of addi-
tive manufacturing (AM) to produce EDM electrodes. 1.1.1 The ignition phase

1.1 Theory of electrical discharge machining
Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is a non-conventional
machining, where electrical discharges occur between two
electrodes immersed in a dielectric fluid promoting heat,
melting, vaporization and material removal. In EDM, there
are no physical cutting forces between the electrode and the
workpiece, avoiding mechanical stresses, chatter and vibra-
tions during machining, as reported by Kunieda et al. [5].
For that reason, EDM is widely applied to machine of very
complex shapes with high accuracy in hard materials [7]
and any other material that offers 0.01 S/cm of electrical
conductivity, as shown in Fig. 1 [7].
Nowadays, there is no complete and definite model
explaining in all details the different processes that take
place during a discharge [8]. The best supported theory
still accepted to explain the EDM of metals is based on
the thermoelectric phenomenon. From investigations of
DiBitonto et al. [8], Patel et al. [9], Eubank et al. [9], Schu-
macher [10], Lazarenko [11] and many other researchers,
the material removal in EDM is associated with the erosive
The elements of EDM are two electrodes, a cathode (−) and
an anode (+), separated by a dielectric fluid, as depicted in
Fig. 2. During operation, an open-circuit voltage is applied
between them across a gap. At the beginning of the process,
there is no current flux due to the resistance of the dielectric
fluid. The servo control mechanism then advances the tool
electrode in the direction of the workpiece, increasing the
electric field between the pair of electrodes. At this time, a
primary emission of the cathode’s electrons occurs. These
electrons are accelerated by the electric field in the direction
of the anode and hit the molecules of the dielectric, liberat-
ing more electrons (secondary electrons) and positive ions
that move, respectively, to the anode and the cathode causing
the ionization.
1.1.2 Formation of the plasma channel
At this stage, the positive ions originated from the dielectric
collide with the cathode and liberate more electrons that are
attracted to the anode, generating a secondary emission. This
generates a superheating followed by a small evaporation of

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Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 3 of 25  14
Fig. 2  Phases of a single discharge pulse during EDM
the dielectric, causing a reduction in the dielectric resist-
ance and increasing the electrical current. At this time, the
formation of a discharge tunnel can be observed and this
causes a drop of the open-circuit voltage and a pronounced
increase in the current. The plasma channel is then created.
It is surrounded by a vapor bubble and the dielectric fluid
that concentrates the discharge energy into a small volume.
This plasma channel formation is also known as the voltage
breakdown, because in this moment the open-circuit voltage
drops rapidly to the break voltage of the dielectric.
1.1.3 Melting and vaporization of the electrode materials
The generated plasma channel grows continually during
the discharge duration. During this time, the high energy
plasma melts both electrodes by thermal conduction, but
limited electrode vaporization occurs, due to the high
plasma pressure over the cathode and anode spots. The
melting process can be explained as follows: The anode
and cathode surfaces are affected, respectively, by the
emission of electrons and positive ions. The electrons
penetrate in the anode and transform their kinetic energy
into thermal energy. The same occurs with the positive
ions when they hit the cathode. It can be observed that
the anode melts quicker than the cathode, due to lower
mass of the electrons that collide with the anode compared
to the positive ions. After electron absorption, the anode
resolidifies after a few microseconds, due to the expan-
sion of the plasma radius that decreases the heat flux to
the anode surface.
1.1.4 Flushing of the melted material
At the end of the discharge duration, a pause period time
begins, when the EDM machine stops the current abruptly.
During this period, the plasma collapses and a vapor bub-
ble is formed, causing the superheated, molten liquid on
the surface of both electrodes to explode into the liquid
dielectric. A part of the material is carried away by the
dielectric, while another part resolidifies in the crater and
in the surroundings, generating the so-called white layer
or recast layer.
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1.2 EDM process parameters
According to Ho and Newman [1], EDM process param-
eters can be classified into two groups: The input param-
eters are the control parameters of the process and the output
parameters are those related to the technological efficiency
of the process or the EDM performance measures. The input
parameters are the following and are shown in Fig. 3:
• Open-circuit voltage (ui): Voltage on the gap without
discharge.
• Average discharge voltage (ue): Voltage on the gap during
the sparking.
• Average work voltage (U): Average gap voltage during
the machining operation;
• Ignition delay time (td): Time interval since the applica-
tion of the open-circuit voltage until the discharge begins.
• Discharge duration (te): The time period of the current
flow (discharge) through the working gap after break-
down.
• Pulse interval time (t0): Time interval time between two
successive voltage pulses.
• Pulse duration (ti): Corresponds to the sum of the dis-
charge duration te and ignition delay time td;
• Pulse cycle time (tp): Corresponds to the sum of the pulse
duration (ti) and interval time (t0);
Fig. 3  Evolution of electrical
tension and current during one
discharge
13
• Discharge current (ie): Current which flows during a dis-
charge through the working gap;
• Average current during discharge (îe): Average current
during the discharge;
• Duty factor (δ): Ratio between the pulse duration ti and
the pulse cycle time tp.
The aforementioned parameters are electrical parameters
of the process and can be set from a wide range of values
depending on the machine used. The influence of the elec-
trical parameters on EDM performance has been object of
extensive research reported in the literature [12]. There exist
also the non-electrical parameters, such as the flushing of
the dielectric fluid together with the rotational movement
of the workpiece and electrode [1]. It is common to repre-
sent a given EDM regime in terms of the discharge energy
delivered to the working gap, described by the equation
We = ue .̂ie .te [J] [2]. The most important output parameters
of the process are:
• Material removal rate (Vw): defined as the material vol-
ume removed per minute from the workpiece electrode;
• Tool wear rate (Ve): defined as the volume removed per
minute from the tool electrode;
• Volumetric relative wear (ϑ): defined as the ratio between
the tool wear Ve and the material removal rate Vw;
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 5 of 25  14
• Surface quality: Surface quality of the machined work-
pieces is usually analyzed by the roughness parameters
Ra or Rz.
2 Materials used as electrodes
This section presents conventional electrode materials used
in EDM, discussing properties that make them suitable for
the process and making a consistent literature review on the
applications of EDM electrodes.
As reported by Kunieda et al. [5], any material demon-
strating good electrical conductivity can be used as EDM
electrode. Materials with higher thermal conductivity are
suitable as tool electrodes as well as materials with higher
melting point and boiling point. Moreover, due to the high
pressure and temperature present on the electrode during
EDM machining, the electrode material must have accept-
able mechanical strength and melting point to reduce tool
wear and edge weakness. Furthermore, since the shape
of the electrode defines the area in which spark erosion
will occur, the dimensional accuracy of the produced part
depends on the dimensional accuracy and the surface texture
of the electrode.
Kern [6] stated that the purpose of an electrode is to trans-
mit the electrical charges and to erode the workpiece to a
desired shape. Different electrode materials greatly affect
machining. Some will remove material efficiently but have
great wear; other electrode materials will have slight wear
but remove material slowly. Thus, the main electrode mate-
rial properties that affect the EDM process are the following:
(1) electrical conductivity; (2) melting point temperature;
(3) structural integrity—how well the material responds
to hundreds of thousands of sparks on its surface will be
a significant factor in determining the electrode material’s
performance regarding wear, surface finish and ability to
withstand poor flushing conditions; (4) mechanical proper-
ties—tensile strength, grain size (if applicable) and hardness
will affect both the fabrication of the electrode, and its per-
formance in the EDM process; (5) manufacturability—the
usefulness of an electrode material is somewhat determined
by the difficulty of manufacturing electrodes from it, such
factors may include machinability, stability and burr forma-
tion and removal; (6) and finally cost.
It can be said that materials having good electrical and
thermal conductivity and high melting point are adequate
to be used as EDM electrodes. Common EDM electrode
materials include brass, copper, graphite, copper graphite,
tellurium copper, tungsten, copper tungsten, tungsten car-
bide, silver, silver tungsten and aluminum. Figure 4 gives an
overview of the electrode materials and type of workpiece
applied by the researchers.
2.1 Copper
Copper is the most commonly used EDM electrode material,
due to its high electrical and thermal conductivity [13]. Cop-
per has also a good structural integrity, which can produce
very fine surface finishes. Abbas et al. [14] reported that all
industries use copper as electrode material. Table 1 shows
some important thermal and electrical properties of pure
copper.
Copper electrode has some disadvantages, for example
it has a high volumetric expansion, which can compromise
the flushing conditions of the particles away of the working
gap [16]. Copper has a low melting point, which causes a
higher tool wear. Another disadvantage of copper is that it
is a ductile material and is difficult to machine and difficult
to deburr. The addition of tellurium on copper improves its
machinability, but increases its wear and decrease the mate-
rial removal rate when compared to pure copper [6]. Copper
is used in a wide range of applications, such as the EDM of
metals, ceramics and composites. Several authors studied
the machining of these materials using copper as electrode.
Some of these studies will be described in the subsections
below.
2.1.1 EDM of metals and their alloys
Mohri et al. [17] studied the electrode wear phenomena in
EDM. They observed the time dependence of an electrode
shape change with EDmachining time. In order to do this,
the wear of the flat portion of the electrode was compared
with its edge portion. AISI 1045 steel was used as the work-
piece material and constant machined parameters were used.
It was found that the edge portion of the copper electrode
wears remarkably at the beginning of machining, while the
flat portion wear of the electrode is low at the same time or
even negative, as it was reported. Throughout the machining
process, the electrode wear at the flat portion of the electrode
tends to increase more than the wear at the edge portion.
When machining AISI 1045 steel, Haron et al. [18] used
copper electrodes with diameter of 9.5, 12 and 20 mm at two
different current (3.5 and 6.5 A) for 20 min, with objective
of determining a possible correlation between current and
performance factors, such as material removal rate (MRR)
and tool wear rate (TWR). It was reported that the electrode
with 20 mm diameter performed best, reaching the highest
MRR with a low tool wear. They also found that electrodes
with smaller diameter were more suitable to be used with
lower current, and electrodes with bigger diameter have a
better performance with higher current.
Wang et al. [19] studied the EDM of austempered duc-
tile iron (ADI) using a copper electrode. The machinability
was evaluated in terms of the material removal rate (MRR),
tool electrode wear rate (TWR) and surface finish within the
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Page 6 of 25
Fig. 4  Overview of electrode and workpiece materials applied
Table 1  Properties of copper [15]
Material
Density (g/cm3)
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm)
Thermal conductivity (W/mK)
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K)
Melting point (°C)
Specific heat (J/kg K)
machining conditions explored. It was reported that increas-
ing the current intensity, the material removal rate, electrode
wear rate and surface roughness are increased.
Ozgedik and Cogun [20] studied the variations of geo-
metrical tool wear and machining performance outputs when
varying machining parameters. The experiments were con-
ducted with steel workpieces and round copper electrodes.
They found that increasing discharge current increases the
workpiece removal rate, tool wear rate, relative wear and
the same happens when increasing the pulse duration. The
highest workpiece removal rate was obtained with suction
flushing together with lower tool wear.
Khan and Saifuddin [21] made a comparative analysis
of the performance of copper and aluminum electrodes for
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Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
EDM stainless steel and carbide. They reported that for both
Cu
electrode materials, material removal rate (MRR) increases
with the increase in current voltage, but MRR is higher dur-
8.93 ing stainless steel than carbide. Regarding MRR and tool
1.7 wear rate (TWR), the copper electrode showed a better per-
385 formance when machining both materials than the aluminum
16.4 electrode.
1083 Khan [22] compared the wear of brass and copper elec-
385 trodes when EDMachining mild steel and aluminum. The
author analyzed the effect of discharge current and voltage
on the wear along the cross section of the electrode and its
length. It was found that wear increases with an increase in
both current and voltage. Copper electrodes also were found
to wear less than brass electrodes, for both mild steel and
aluminum. It was also reported that the copper electrode had
a higher wear when machining mild steel than when machin-
ing aluminum. Kahn et al. [23], using copper electrodes,
analyzed the effect of the shape of the electrode on MMR,
TWR, volumetric wear ratio (VWR) and surface roughness
when machining mild steel. They used round-, square-, tri-
angular- and diamond-shaped copper electrodes and var-
ied the discharge current for each electrode shape. They
found out that round-shaped copper electrodes achieved the
maximum MRR, followed by the square-, triangular- and
diamond-shaped electrodes. The tool wear ratio (TWR)
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 7 of 25  14
was also found to be minimum for the round-shaped copper
electrodes while the highest volumetric wear ratio (VWR)
was achieved by the diamond-shaped copper electrode. More
recently [24] conducted experiments on EDM of EN8 steel
using copper and brass electrodes. Factorial design of exper-
iment was performed to assess the influence of discharge
current and time and interval time on material removal rate.
Her and Weng [25] developed experiments on the micro-
electro-discharge machining of a copper plate using tung-
sten carbide as material for electrode in comparison with a
copper electrode. It was reported that for both materials the
electrode wear is higher when negative polarity is selected.
Copper electrodes suffered a lower wear, although the MRR
was lower and, when using positive polarity, a very low sur-
face roughness was achieved by the copper electrode.
Rebelo et  al. [26] performed EDM tests with copper
electrodes when machining copper–beryllium alloys. They
analyzed the effect of roughing, finishing and micro-finish-
ing EDM parameters on MRR and surface roughness when
machining a copper–beryllium alloy. They found out that, for
this pair electrode/workpiece, the highest MRR in roughing
regime is achieved for a certain value of discharge duration.
They also compared these results with the ones achieved by
a pair copper electrode and steel workpiece, showing that the
MRR of the later is much greater than the copper–beryllium
alloy. When finishing, the highest MRR occurred for the
same discharge time, independent of the discharge current.
Amorim and Weingaertner [27] also developed experiments
concerning the EDM of copper–beryllium alloy using copper
electrodes and comparing with copper–tungsten electrodes.
They reported that no matter the machining condition, cop-
per electrodes achieved worst results than copper–tungsten
electrodes.
Singh et  al. [28] developed experiments to study the
effects of machining parameters such as pulse current on
material removal rate, diameter overcut, electrode wear and
surface roughness when EDM of EN-31 tool steel hardened
and tempered. In order to analyze the influence of the elec-
trode material, copper, copper tungsten, brass and aluminum
electrodes were used. They reported that the copper elec-
trode achieved the best results for MRR and electrode wear.
Performing similar experiments, Payal et al. [29] used
electrodes of copper, brass and graphite to analyze the EDM
surface of EN-31 tool steel. They also measured the MRR
as a function of the discharge duration and current for all
the electrodes. They showed that the copper electrodes
remove more material for high discharge currents. It was
also reported that the MRR increases for all electrodes until
the discharge pulse reaches a specific value, and beyond cer-
tain discharge duration starts to decrease. Copper showed
higher MRR for high discharge durations. Copper electrodes
produced by powder metallurgy methods were also applied
to EDMachine EN-31 tool steel [30]. The authors studied the
influence of copper–manganese ratio on workpiece surface
micro-hardness and surface roughness. Copper–manganese
electrodes at a ratio of 70–30 in weight produced better
result than pure copper electrode.
Amorim and Weingaertner [31] investigated the EDM of
AISI P20 tool steel under finishing conditions using cop-
per as electrode. They examined the effect of a variety of
parameters such as discharge current, discharge duration,
pulse interval time, electrode polarity and generator mode
on the MRR, electrode wear and workpiece surface rough-
ness. It was observed that, regardless the discharge current,
with increasing discharge duration the MRR increased up
to a maximum value and started to decrease. Relative wear
ratio was found to be higher at higher discharge currents.
The surface roughness also increased with the increase in the
discharge time and duration, but only until a certain level,
beyond that the surface roughness began to decrease. It was
also concluded that, independently on the discharge current,
discharge duration or actuation mode, the wear ratio for
EDM machining with negative tool polarity is much higher
than that with positive tool polarity.
In a later work [32], the same authors developed similar
experiments on finishing EDMachining of AISI P20 tool
steel using copper and graphite as electrodes materials.
Results showed that copper presents stable EDM opera-
tions and it is well suited to produce electrodes of different
sizes and geometries. Also machining AISI P20 tool steel,
Kiyak and Cakir [33] examined the influence of discharge
current, discharge duration and interval duration on the sur-
face roughness of the workpiece. It was reported that surface
roughness increased when discharge current and discharge
duration were increased. Setting these parameters at a low
level resulted in a better surface finish.
Statistical analysis on the copper electrode wear in EDM
of tool steel DIN 1.2714 (AISI L6) was made by Zarepour
et al. [34]. They tested the effect of five factors on the elec-
trode wear: pre-EDM roughing, discharge current, discharge
duration, voltage and engaging time. The authors reported
that the pre-EDM roughing has a significant effect on the
electrode wear, and increasing this factor leads to an increase
in the electrode wear. Discharge current also had an impor-
tant effect on the electrode wear. Increasing the discharge
time led to a decrease in the tool wear and the voltage had
insignificant influence.
Haron et al. [35] investigated the wear behavior of cop-
per and graphite electrodes when machining XW42 (AISI
D2) tool steel. MRR and electrode wear were selected as
performance factors to be investigated. They tested the
electrodes for two different discharge currents. The results
showed that copper removes more material from the XW42
workpiece than the graphite electrode, allied with a lower
tool wear. They also reported that the copper electrode is
suitable for roughing process. Suman et al. [36] studied
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the effect of discharge current on electrode wear rate using
copper as electrode and AISI D2 tool steel as workpiece.
The authors reported an increase in the tool wear rate with
increasing discharge current. Raj and Prabhu [37] infused
carbon nanotubes (CNT) on copper electrodes and compared
EDMachinability of AISI D2 steel with copper electrodes.
Workpiece surface quality improvement was observed with
the addition of CNT.
Jaharah et al. [38] studied the performance of copper
electrode when EDM AISI H13 tool steel. The surface
roughness, electrode wear rate and material removal rate
were investigated for a certain peak current, discharge dura-
tion and interval duration. The results of the experiments
showed that the optimum condition for surface roughness
was obtained at low peak current, low pulse-on and pulse-
off, although high MRR was obtained when setting at high
peak current, medium pulse-on and low pulse-off. Discharge
current was the major factor and the condition of almost no
wear was obtained at high discharge current, high discharge
duration and interval time.
The EDM machining of shape memory alloys using cop-
per electrodes was made by Chen et al. [39]. As workpiece
materials they used TiNiZr and TiNiCr ternary shape alloys,
evaluating the MRR, TWR and surface roughness as func-
tions of the discharge current and discharge duration. It was
found that the MRR increases with the discharge current,
as it was expected. Regarding the discharge duration, the
MRR reached a maximum value and decreased. The elec-
trode wear also showed a similar pattern as that observed for
the MRR. Comparing the machining behavior of both alloys,
the authors reported that the MRR of TiNiCr was greater
than that of TiNiZr for various values of discharge duration.
Surface roughness increased with the discharge current and
discharge duration, following an empirical relation, exhib-
iting almost the same behavior for both workpiece alloys.
Ho et al. [40] developed experiments when machining
Ti–6Al–4V alloy by EDM technique using both solid and
powder compacted copper electrodes. Results showed that,
except for solid copper electrode under negative polarity,
recast layer hardness was in general lower to the bulk mate-
rial and the surface roughness achieved by the solid cop-
per electrode was the lowest despite the polarity used. They
reported that powder compacted copper electrodes produced
greater alloying of their material than the solid electrode. In
order to explore the influence of EDM parameters on vari-
ous aspects of the surface integrity when EDMachining of
Ti–6Al–4V, Hascalik and Caydas [41] used different elec-
trode materials, namely graphite, copper and aluminum. The
experimental results revealed an increase in material removal
rate, surface roughness, electrode wear and average recast
layer thickness with increasing current and pulse duration.
Similar results were obtained by Verma et al. [42], when
applying full factorial approach for optimization of process
13
parameter when EDmachining Ti–6Al–4V. Tsai et al. [43]
applied vibration assistant methods to EDM Ti–6Al–4V and
compared to unassisted EDM. Copper, copper–tungsten and
graphite electrodes were applied. Vibration-assisted EDM
improved MRR rate when using copper electrodes and sur-
face crack density was also reduced.
Copper electrodes were reported to always create surface
cracks on the workpiece. Kumar et al. [44] also investigated
the effect of EDM electrical parameters on surface roughness
and material removal rate when using copper as electrode
and Ti–6Al–4V as workpiece. The authors found the high-
est values for MRR and surface roughness at high discharge
current and moderate discharge duration. Ti–5Al–2.5Sn tita-
nium alloys were EDMachined with copper electrodes [45].
The effect of discharge current, discharge duration, interval
duration and voltage on the surface roughness was evalu-
ated by means of a central composite design experiment.
The authors found an increase in surface roughness with
increasing discharge current and duration. In the field of
micro-EDM D’Urso and Merla [46] observed that copper
electrodes achieved worst surface quality compared to tung-
sten carbide when micro-drilling different materials such as
magnesium, brass, AISI 304 and titanium.
EDM of Inconel 800 with copper electrodes has been
recently studied [47]. Performance factors such as MRR,
TWR and surface roughness were analyzed using a Taguchi
Design of Experiments, with discharge duration, interval
duration and discharge current as input variables. Wear ratio
was optimized at 15 A discharge current, 6 µs discharge
duration and 5 µs interval time. Copper electrodes were also
applied to machine Inconel 718 [48] and 601 alloys [49],
focusing on the influence of electrical parameters on surface
integrity aspects such as surface crack density. More recently
Micro-EDM drilling of Inconel 718 with copper, graphite
and copper–tungsten electrodes has also been performed
[50]. Copper achieved best MRR and surface roughness
when compared to graphite and copper–tungsten electrodes.
2.1.2 EDM of ceramics
Much attention has been given to EDM of advanced ceram-
ics and composites, due to the necessity of better materials
allied to the difficulty in machining these brittle and hard
material using conventional methods [51]. Zhang et al. [52]
pointed out that the combination of melting temperature and
thermal conductivity of the ceramics can give an indication
of the machinability in EDM. Copper electrodes were used
for EDmachining of insulating ceramics by Mohri et al. [53].
Electrodes with negative polarity were used with an assis-
tant electrode made of a metal plate with positive polarity.
They showed that with this method it is possible to machine
insulating ceramics such as S ­ i3N4, SiC, Z
­ rO2 and A
­ l 2O 3
using copper electrodes. It was also reported that when the
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 9 of 25  14
spark occurs at a certain point of the ceramic surface, the
materials of copper from the electrode and of carbon from
the dielectric move into the ceramics surface with a larger
area than the discharge crater, creating a conductive layer
over the ceramic surface during the machining. Applying an
assisting electrode in EDM of S ­ i3N4, [54] studied electrical
pulses occurring in nonconductive ceramics and pointed out
the main differences when comparing with EDM of met-
als. Moudood et al. [55] investigated EDM of ­ZrO2 with
copper electrodes by using the assisting electrode method.
Discharge current and duration were varied to check the
influence on MRR, TWR and surface characteristics. Best
surface quality was achieved with copper electrodes. Also
applying copper as assisting electrode [56], EDMed ­ZrO2,
Agarwal et al. concluded that negative tool polarity is nec-
essary for effective machining. Material removal process is
driven mainly due to thermal spalling and increases with
higher energy input.
Lee and Li [57] studied the influence of operating param-
eters of EDM tungsten carbide. The process performance
was evaluated in terms of the material removal rate, volu-
metric relative wear and surface finish quality of the work-
piece. Electrode materials investigated were graphite, copper
and copper tungsten. Copper achieved the highest relative
wear rate when at a high peak current. They reported that
copper exhibited the best performance with regard to surface
finish, followed by copper tungsten.
Luis et al. [58] investigated the influence of the most rel-
evant EDM factors affecting material removal rate (MRR)
and volumetric wear ratio (VWR) when EDMachining
siliconized silicon carbide (SiSiC) with copper electrodes.
They made use of the design of experiments (DOE) and
multiple linear regression analysis to develop the experi-
ments. The results showed that, for MRR the only influen-
tial factors were the gap voltage and the discharge current,
and the higher these factors are the more material from the
workpiece is removed. Regarding VWR, the most influential
factors were, from the highest to the lowest level of impor-
tance, discharge current, discharge time and flushing pres-
sure. VWR decreased as the discharge current increased, but
increased with discharge time. It was also found that increas-
ing flushing pressure led to an improvement on the electrode
wear. Sanchez et al. [59] studied sinking electrical discharge
machining (SEDM) of SiSiC with copper, copper–graph-
ite, graphite and copper–tungsten electrodes and compared
process performance such as MRR, corner and front wear.
The authors found that copper electrodes performed better in
terms of material removal rate and also tool wear was found
to be low. Lau et al. [52] observed an increase in MRR with
increasing discharge current and duration when machining
­Al2O3. Copper electrodes were found to perform better than
graphite when machining ­Al2O3, as reported by [60]. The
addition of carbon nanotubes (CNT) to copper was found
to improve EDM performance during machining of SiC, as
reported by Liew et al. [61]. The authors found an increase
by 65% on MRR when using Cu-1.0 wt% CNT compared to
pure copper electrodes. Electrode wear and surface rough-
ness increased when using the composite electrode.
Torres et al. [62] applied EDM of ­TiB2 using copper
electrodes. The influence of important parameters such as
discharge current and duration on MRR, TWR and surface
roughness were investigated. Discharge duration played the
major factor influence material removal rate and surface
roughness, whereas discharge duration had the highest effect
on TWR.
2.1.3 EDM of composites
EDM has been also used in machining of metal matrix com-
posites, such as in the work described by Ramulu et al. [63],
where the machinability of SiCw/Al was investigated. To
perform the study, brass and copper were used as electrodes.
The workpiece was machined in rough, semi-rough and fin-
ish conditions, and for each condition two experiments were
performed with copper and brass electrodes, with 25 vol%,
SiCw/Al and two experiments with 15 vol% and SiCw/Al
using only brass electrodes. EDM performance was indi-
cated by MRR and TWR. The results indicated that SiCw/
Al can be easily machined by EDM, with the machining
time appearing to be higher in the 25 vol%, SiCw/Al than
in the 15 vol% and SiCw/Al. It was also observed that the
copper electrodes wear less than brass electrodes. Dhupal
et al. [64] applied copper electrodes to EDM Al–SiC com-
posites, evaluating the effect of electrical parameters on
process performance measures and applying multi-objective
optimization to determine optimal parameter combination.
More recently, Kumar et al. [65] investigated the surface
integrity of Al–SiC and Al–SiC–B4C composites. After
EDMachining with copper electrodes, the heat-affected
zone depth of Al–SiC–B4C was greater than Al–SiC. Crater
diameter and surface roughness were also more pronounced
on Al–SiC–B4C.
Copper was also used as an electrode in order to evalu-
ate the feasibility of machining A ­ l2O3/6061Al composite
by rotary EDM. Yan et al. [66] used the Taguchi method to
reach the optimal MRR, TWR, VWR and surface rough-
ness values. It was reported that the process is feasible when
comparing with other machining processes.
EDM of composites was also studied by Liu [67], when
investigating the tool electrode wear of electrodes made of
brass and copper when machining TiN/Si 3N4 composite
material. Three different discharge currents and different
discharge duration were applied. Copper electrode achieved
less wear than brass electrodes regardless of the discharge
current or discharge duration used. SEM micrographs of
copper electrodes surfaces showed that they were covered by
13
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Page 10 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
a resolidified layer, indicating a smooth erosion of the elec-
trodes; therefore, a fine surface finish can be achieved with
copper electrodes. Kumar et al. [68] studied the EDM of
Al2618 MMC with aluminum nitride (AlN), silicon nitride
­(Si3N4) and zirconium diboride ­(ZrB2). The authors tested
different matrix/reinforcement ratios and evaluated the effect
of EDM parameters on MRR and TWR. Reinforcement
content plays a major role on the EDM performance, with
MRR and TWR decreasing with increasing reinforcement
content. Rengasamy et al. [69] evaluated the effect of rein-
forcement content on MRR and TWR when machining Al
4032–TiB2–ZrB2 MMC produced by in situ reaction. Both
MRR and TWR are greatly influenced by the reinforcement
content. Hourmand et al. [70] applied copper electrodes to
EDMachine Al–Mg2Si and investigated the main influencing
process parameters on MRR and TWR. Open voltage and
discharge current played major roles on MRR, whereas dis-
charge duration had the highest effect on TWR. Puertas et al.
[71] investigated the die-sinking EDM of cobalt-bounded
tungsten carbide using electrolytic copper as electrode. They
analyzing the influence of current intensity, pulse duration
and duty cycle over variables such as surface roughness,
electrode wear and material removal rate. Surface roughness
was strongly influenced by discharge current intensity, there-
fore low intensity values should be used in order to obtain
a good surface finish. Discharge current was also found
as a major factor in electrode wear and material removal
rate. Selvarajan et al. [72] investigated EDM of ­Si3N4–TiN
ceramic composites using copper electrodes and applied
Taguchi method to optimize electric and non-electric param-
eters using several response parameters. Yongfeng et al. [73]
studied the EDM of ­ZrB2–SiC composites and evaluated the
influence of electrode polarity, discharge current and dura-
tion and interval duration on MRR, side gap and surface
roughness. Large molten drops were found on the workpiece
surface with positive electrode polarity, whereas polygonal
material layers were observed with negative polarity. Dis-
charge energy was found to significantly influence MRR.
Hanaoka et al. [74] added carbon nanotubes (CNT) and
graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) to ­Si3N4 and performed EDM
experiments using the electrode assistant method. Different
reinforcement–matrix ratios were evaluated and compared
to EDMachining of pure ­Si3N4. Better electrode wear and
surface roughness were observed with the additions of CNT
and GNP, although a lower MRR was reached when com-
pared to pure ­Si3N4.
2.2 Graphite
Graphite is the second most common electrode material for
EDM, due to its thermal and electrical properties, allied
with good machinability. The USA industry commonly
uses graphite as electrode, as it was firstly developed there
13
and the USA EDM equipment was focused on the use of
graphite electrodes. In contrast to copper, graphite has a high
wear resistance due to its high melting point, although its
mechanical strength is lower than that of metallic materials,
these properties are not so relevant for EDM as the forces
produced during the process are very low [5].
Some parameters, unique to graphite, are important for
the EDM process, namely particle size (lower particles sizes
improve the mechanical properties of graphite, which result
in a better electrode wear and better workpiece surface fin-
ish), porosity (which can affect the electrical and thermal
properties of the same), flexural strength and hardness.
Table 2 presents some important properties of pure graphite.
Graphite has some advantages over copper that include
a faster cutting, lower wear and better machinability, while
comparable surface finishes can be achieved depending on
the graphite grade. One disadvantage of graphite is that
when machined graphite will produce a great amount of
dust which unless controlled can penetrate in the mechani-
cal components of the machine, increasing the equipment
wear and reducing its life [32]. Although less literature than
copper is found concerning the use of graphite as electrode,
interesting studies and results were made regarding the
performance of this electrode when machining metal and
ceramics.
Aas [76] investigated the performance of two different
grades of graphite electrodes in EDM of seals slots in a jet
engine turbine vane, which are made by a nickel-base spe-
cial alloy. The graphite electrodes used were Poco EDM3
and Poco EDM AF5, the later having finer grains than the
former. MRR and electrode wear were measured under dif-
ferent discharge current and discharge duration values. The
results showed that EDM3 electrodes achieved superior
MRR than AF5 under the same machining conditions. The
electrode wear of AF5 electrode was much smaller than the
electrode wear of EDM3, although both electrodes had a
low tool wear. The author concluded that EDM3 graphite
electrode should be used if high speed is the most important
productivity factor, and AF5 should be used when low elec-
trode wear is preferable.
Amorim and Weingaertner [32] used graphite electrodes
for finishing EDMachining AISI P20. The authors reported
Table 2  Properties of graphite [75]
Material Graphite
3
Density (g/cm ) 2.25
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 6000
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 25
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 0.6–4.3
Melting point (°C) 3650
Specific heat (J/kg K) 707
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 11 of 25  14
that graphite electrodes can be applied from rough to fin-
ish EDM operations with also good results; however, the
high price of the finest graphite powder is still a restric-
tion to its widespread use. Haron et al. [35] investigating
the wear behavior of graphite electrodes when machining
XW42 (AISI D2) tool steel reported that graphite electrodes
are suitable for finishing process. Salman and Kayacan [77]
evaluated the surface roughness values after EDM AISI
D2 tools steel using different electrodes materials: cop-
per, graphite and copper–tungsten. With the experimental
results, they established a mathematical relation between
surface roughness and the machining parameters by using an
artificial intelligence technique. They concluded that similar
roughness values were obtained in experiments using graph-
ite and copper–tungsten electrodes. Prabhu and Vinayagam
[78] developed a regression model based on ANOVA to pre-
dict surface roughness in EDM process using graphite elec-
trodes to machine ASTM D2. The most dominant parameter
on the surface roughness was found to be discharge current
followed by discharge duration.
Payal et al. [29] compared copper, brass and graphite
electrode to EDM EN-31 tool steel, focusing on the sur-
face characteristics obtained. It was observed that graphite
removes more material than the copper electrode only until
a certain current level. For graphite electrode, there was a
slight increase in MRR up to a certain discharge duration
and beyond that it started to decrease. SEM of EDM sur-
faces showed that all specimens machined by the different
electrodes presented a different pattern of heat-affected zone,
with graphite having a deeper HAZ when compared to cop-
per and brass. Younis et al. [79] observed that EDMed sur-
faces of tool steel achieved lower surface residual stresses
with graphite electrodes when compared to copper–graphite.
Hascalik and Caydas [41] developed experiments also
with graphite electrodes in order to explore the influence of
EDM parameters on various aspects of the surface integrity
when EDMachining of Ti6Al4V. They reported that graphite
electrode gave the highest material removal rate and low-
est wear rate. Muttamara [80] compared graphite and cop-
per–graphite electrodes during EDM of Ti6Al4V. Graphite
electrodes performed better than copper–graphite in terms
of MRR, but surface finish was worse due to the lower gap
distance applied. In vibration-assisted EDM, graphite elec-
trodes performed worse than copper and copper–tungsten
during machining of Ti6Al4V [43]. Santoki et al. [81] com-
pared graphite, copper and silver electrodes during EDma-
chining of AISI 304 stainless steel, focusing on the overcut
optimization as main target. Graphite was found to perform
better than silver regarding overcut.
Rahul et al. [82] tested the machinability of different
Inconel grades (601, 625, 718 and 825) using graphite
electrodes. Taguchi method was applied to determine opti-
mum parameter settings for gap voltage, discharge current,
discharge duration, duty factor and flushing pressure. Per-
formance parameters evaluated were MRR, TWR, surface
roughness and surface crack density. The authors found that
optimal parameters differ from one Inconel grade to another,
depending on the physical and chemical composition of each
grade. White layer thickness was found higher for Inconel
601 and lower for Inconel 718. Torres et al. [83] investigated
the EDM performance of graphite with Inconel 600 grade
under positive and negative electrode polarity. Discharge
current was found to play a major role in material removal
rate and electrode wear regardless of the electrode polarity,
whereas better surface roughness was achieved with positive
polarity. During hole EDM drilling of Inconel 718 graph-
ite electrodes were found to outperform copper and cop-
per–tungsten considering electrode wear, although MRR and
surface roughness were low compared to the other materials
[50].
Graphite was also used to EDM ceramics as reported by
Lee and Li [57], where they studied the influence of operat-
ing parameters on EDMachining of tungsten carbide. The
process performance was evaluated in terms of the material
removal rate, relative wear ratio and surface finish quality of
the workpiece. Results showed that graphite electrodes gave
the highest material removal rate when compared to other
electrodes tested. Comparing graphite, copper–graphite and
copper electrodes during EDM of alumina, Muttamara et al.
[60] reported that graphite electrodes achieved better per-
formance than copper in terms of MRR, TWR and surface
roughness, but lower than copper–graphite. When machining
­ZrO2, Moudood et al. [55] found that graphite electrodes
achieved better material removal rate than copper and brass
electrodes. In contrast, Sanchez et al. [59] found that graph-
ite electrodes presented the highest wear, lowest MRR and
worst surface quality during EDMachining of SiSiC and
­B4C, when compared to copper–graphite, copper and cop-
per tungsten electrodes.
2.3 Copper–tungsten (CuW)
Copper–tungsten electrode was designed in order to combine
the best properties of copper (high electrical and thermal
conductivities) and tungsten (high melting point), achieving
a low wear electrode. CuW electrode is manufactured by
powder metallurgy techniques, pressing both materials in a
mold and then sintering them. During sintering, shrinkage
occurs and porosity should be controlled. Copper–tungsten
materials are generally found in a 25–30%Cu 75–70%W
grade. Table 3 shows the properties of a typical CuW elec-
trode, with 25%Cu 75%W. Observing the table one can see
that the presence of tungsten diminishes the electrical and
thermal conductivity of the material when only copper is
used, which reduces the machining speed. On the other
side, the tungsten greatly enhances the melting point of the
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Page 12 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
Table 3  Properties of copper–tungsten (25%Cu 75%W) [84]
Material CuW
Density (g/cm3) 14.84
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 3.83
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 220
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 10.77
Melting point (°C) 1085–3410
Specific heat (J/kg K) 214
electrode, leading to a consequent lower wear. Copper–tung-
sten electrodes are more expensive than graphite and copper
electrodes, and so they are limited to more specific applica-
tions, such as the EDM of WC–Co, which are more difficult
to machine using copper electrodes.
2.3.1 EDM of metals and their alloys
Lee et al. [85] performed a study to establish the influence
of the major EDM parameters on the surface integrity of
AISI 1045 carbon steel when machined by a copper–tung-
sten electrode. The parameters considered were the dis-
charge current and the discharge time, and the performance
factors used were the MRR, workpiece surface roughness,
hole enlargement, white layer thickness surface cracks and
residual stresses. It was found that generally, MRR, surface
roughness and hole enlargement will increase for higher
values of pulse currents; however, an excessive discharge
duration will reduce both MRR and surface roughness. As
for the white layer thickness, increasing the current and the
discharge time will tend to form thicker layers. They also
reported that the current influences the crack density and the
discharge time influences the crack opening.
Amorim and Weingaertner [27] reported that cop-
per–tungsten electrodes achieved better MRR than copper
when machining copper–beryllium alloys. In EDM with
copper–tungsten electrodes, the increase in the current pro-
moted lower volumetric relative wear.
Studying the EDM of tool steels, Singh et al. [28] com-
pared copper–tungsten with other three electrodes regarding
the performance parameters when machining EN-31. Results
showed that the copper–tungsten electrodes achieved low
electrode wear and low values of surface roughness at high
discharge currents. Ali et al. [86] applied Taguchi method
to define the most relevant variables influencing EDM of
AISI4340 steel with copper–tungsten electrodes. He et al.
[87] investigated the electrode wear process of CuW and
carbon layer characterization during EDM. Discharge cur-
rent and duration had the highest effect on TWR, followed
by duty cycle and open voltage. Carbon layer is formed rap-
idly in the beginning EDM and is formed by carbon released
from dielectric and elements of the workpiece.
13
Salman and Kayacan [77] used copper–tungsten elec-
trodes to EDM D2 tool steel and evaluated the surface
roughness of the workpiece with different machining
parameters. It was observed that copper–tungsten elec-
trodes showed better surface roughness in rough conditions
than in finish conditions when compared to graphite elec-
trodes. Also using D2 tool steel as workpiece, Marafona and
Wykes [88] used copper–tungsten electrodes for optimizing
the material removal rate of the process. Applying Taguchi
method, they optimized the EDM input parameters, so that
the MMR, TWR and surface roughness were improved. It
was showed that there is no single set of input parameters
which optimized all three output parameters. The authors
also reported that copper–tungsten electrode is suitable to
be used when high precision is required. Studying the black
layer composition, also when EDMachining D2 tool steel,
Marafona [89] reported that the composition of the black
layer changes the thermal conductivity of the surface of
copper–tungsten electrode, contributing to TWR improve-
ment. Mathew et al. [90] found that CuW performed worse
in terms of MRR than copper electrode when machining
AISI H13 tool steel, due to the influence of the electrode
powder drop that accumulated on the workpiece surface and
generated process instabilities.
Theisen and Schuermann [91] investigated the EDM per-
formance of copper–tungsten electrodes when machining
Ni–Ti shape memory alloys. Surface integrity of the work-
piece and MRR under distinct discharge current and fre-
quency conditions were studied. They reported that increas-
ing the discharge current resulted in deeper and wider craters
and consequent increase in the surface roughness. The same
behavior was observed when the frequency varied. The
thickness of the melting zone also increased with an increase
in these parameters, also creating cracks on the workpiece
surface. MRR increased with increasing the discharge cur-
rent. The authors concluded that the Ni–Ti alloys can be
commercially machined by EDM using a copper–tungsten
electrode. When die-sinking Ti–6Al–4V with copper–tung-
sten electrodes, Zainal et al. [92] concluded that discharge
current and duration had the highest effect on tool wear ratio.
Copper–tungsten electrodes were also found to improve
MRR when using vibration-assisted EDM of Ti–6Al–4V
[43]. Kumar et al. [93] evaluated the effect of cryogenically
treated (DCT) CuW electrodes on TWR when machining
Ti–5Al–2.5Sn. Comparing to untreated electrodes, a gain of
15.86% on TWR was observed with DCT CuW electrodes.
In order to improve the CuW electrodes performance,
Kwon et al. [94] developed a new nano-CuW powder. They
investigated the optimum sintering parameters to obtain
full density and measure electrical and thermal properties
of the electrodes, comparing them with infiltrated CuW elec-
trodes and copper. The composition effects were examined
with respect to the electrode performance. Two different
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 13 of 25  14
electrodes were manufactured, one with 65 wt% of W and
the other with 70 wt% of W. EDM tests were performed
with 4140H steel. They reported that the new electrode had
a homogeneous and uniform microstructure, with mini-
mum pores. Electrical and thermal properties were excel-
lent according to the authors, as was also the wear resist-
ance of the electrodes. Stampfl et al. [95] described a new
method for producing copper–tungsten, where silicon is used
as a mold for electroplating copper–tungsten. The authors
reported that the electrodes made by this method are suit-
able to shape any kind of conductive material, especially
amorphous metal, which are difficult to machine with con-
ventional methods.
2.3.2 EDM of ceramics
Lee et al. [57] used copper–tungsten electrodes to study the
influence of operating parameters of tungsten carbide EDM
machining. The results showed that copper–tungsten exhib-
its the lowest relative wear ratio when compared to copper
and graphite electrodes, while the surface finish obtained
was worse than copper, but better than graphite electrodes.
The same authors [85], studying the surface integrity of
EDMachined surfaces, performed a series of tests using cop-
per–tungsten electrodes in machining tungsten carbide. Dis-
charge current, discharge duration, interval time and open
voltage were varied to observe their effect on the workpiece
surface. The tests indicated that the surface roughness is a
function of two parameters, discharge current and discharge
time, and the increase in these parameters will lead to an
increase in surface roughness. The depth of the EDMachined
damage layer was found to have a direct relation with the
discharge current and discharge time, as an increase in these
parameters will increase the depth of the damaged layer and
the number of micro-cracks. They also reported that the con-
ditions to minimize the surface damage are far from being
equal to the ones that maximize erosion rates.
Copper–tungsten electrodes were also used in dry EDM
machining, as reported by Yu et al. [96], when machining
cemented carbide (G5). They compared the performance
of dry machining with oil machining, using the same elec-
trode materials. The results showed that dry machining with
Cu–W electrodes resulted in a much better MMR and elec-
trode wear than when oil EDM machining. When machining
SiSiC and B ­ 4C with CuW, Sanchez et al. [59] observed less
electrode wear than copper–graphite and graphite electrodes
and lower corner wear than copper electrodes when machin-
ing SiSiC.
A study on the finishing die-sinking micro-EDM of
tungsten carbide was performed by Jahan et al. [97]. They
investigated the effect of tungsten, copper–tungsten and
silver–tungsten electrodes on the surface finish of WC
when micro-EDM. The performance of the electrodes was
evaluated based on the achieved surface roughness with
respect to MRR and TWR. The experiments were per-
formed for a range of gap voltages and capacitances. They
observed that, regarding the micro-EDMachined surface, for
all three electrodes the crater size of the machined surface
got smaller with the reduction in the discharge energy, but
a non-uniform crater distribution was obtained. Black spots
on the machined surface were observed when using CuW as
electrodes at very low discharge energy. Results indicated an
intermediate percentage of carbon on the machined surface
when using CuW electrodes. It was also reported that the
surface roughness is strongly dependent on the gap voltage
and capacitance, and a reduction on these parameters led to
a decrease on the surface roughness. The authors reported
that the higher the gap voltage and capacitance, the higher
the MRR, and CuW electrodes presented the best MRR.
Measuring the TWR, they found that a decrease in the gap
voltage and capacitance caused a decrease in the TWR, and
CuW showed a TWR between W and AgW.
2.4 Brass
Brass was one of the first EDM electrode materials used due
to its low cost and easy machinability by conventional meth-
ods. However due to its high wear rate, it is seldom used
as an electrode in modern sinking EDM machines and in
industry, used only in specific applications in older machines
with RC power supplies in which wear is not an important
factor. From Table 4, it can be noticed that its thermal and
electrical conductivity are not as good as copper materials,
consequently a lower removal rate is expected.
Khan and Saifuddin [21] compared the wear of brass
and copper electrodes when EDM machining mild steel and
aluminum. It was reported that brass electrodes removed
more materials from the workpiece than copper. Payal et al.
[29] used copper, brass and graphite electrodes to analyze
the EDM surface of EN-31 tool steel. Results showed that
brass had a better response in surface finish for all values of
discharge current when compared to the other electrodes and
MRR started to decrease after specific discharge duration.
Singh et al. [28] also used EN-31 tool steel as workpiece to
analyze the effect of brass electrodes on the performance
Table 4  Properties of brass [98]
Material Brass
3
Density (g/cm ) 7.2–8.86
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 3.18–28
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 26–233
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 18–26
Melting point (°C) 809–1030
Specific heat (J/kg K) 375–380
13
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Page 14 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
parameters under different machining conditions. Results
reported that brass presented the highest wear when com-
pared to the other electrodes. When micro-EDM drilling of
AISI 304 stainless steel, D’Urso et al. [99] compared the
performance of brass and tungsten carbide electrodes. It was
observed that brass performed better in terms of MRR, but
it was affected by a high TWR when compared to tungsten
carbide. In a later study, brass was also reported to have the
worst wear ratio during micro-EDM drilling of brass, mag-
nesium, AISI 304 and titanium [46]. Surekha et al. [100]
applied brass electrodes in the machining of high carbon
high chromium steel and developed regression models to
predict performance measures. In the field of ceramics,
EDM brass electrodes were used to EDM Z ­ rO2 using the
electrode assistance method and compared to copper and
graphite [55]. Brass achieved the lowest MRR regardless
of the EDM parameter applied. Brass electrodes were also
used in the EDM of metal matrix composites, as shown in
the work of Ramulu et al. [63] reporting that brass electrodes
had a higher wear when compared to copper electrodes dur-
ing EDMachining of Al–SiC. In a later research, Dhupal
et al. [64] found similar behavior when machining Al–SiC.
Liu [67] investigated the tool electrode wear of electrodes
made of brass when machining TiN–Si3N 4 composite
material. Although brass electrode suffered a higher wear
when compared to copper electrodes, SEM micrographs of
the electrodes indicated that a fine surface finish could be
achieved.
2.5 Metal infiltrated‑graphite
Copper–graphite is manufactured by producing graphite
with a controlled amount of porosity which is then infiltrated
by copper by capillary action in a furnace. The resulting
material has an increased thermal conductivity and mechani-
cal strength and also combines the easy fabrication of graph-
ite with the stability of copper. Table 5 shows some proper-
ties of this material.
Sundaram et al. [102] presented the outcome of experi-
mental investigations carried out to assess the performance
of copper–graphite as tool electrode material in micro-EDM
of hardened tool steel XW42. Standard tungsten data results
Table 5  Properties of copper–graphite [101]
Material Cu–graphite
3
Density (g/cm ) 6.8
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 4,36
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 200–300
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 7.4
Melting point (°C) –
Specific heat (J/kg K) –
13
were used for comparison. The electrode wear, material
removal rate, surface roughness and spark gap were ana-
lyzed under certain machine conditions. They reported that
the productivity and the machined surface are superior than
that achieved with tungsten electrode.
Testing the EDM of insulating ceramics, Muttamara
et al. [60] analyzed the performance of three different elec-
trodes when machining alumina. Copper, graphite and cop-
per–graphite electrodes were used to compare the effects
of generation of a conductive layer on the alumina surface.
They also tested the effect of polarity on the EDM per-
formance. The results showed that the copper-infiltrated-
graphite electrode achieved the highest MRR and mini-
mal TWR. The use of positive polarity gave better EDM
performance for the copper–graphite electrodes. When the
conductive layer thickness on the alumina surface was ana-
lyzed, it was found that, for negative electrode polarity, the
copper-infiltrated–graphite electrode created the thickest
layer. The same pattern was observed for the positive elec-
trode polarity, but the conductive layer created was lower.
The copper-infiltrated–graphite electrodes also presented
the best surface finish. Mutammara [80] also compared the
EDM performance of copper–graphite and graphite elec-
trodes when machining Ti6Al4V, observing a better surface
roughness when using copper–graphite electrodes. When
machining SiSiC and B ­ 4C, copper–graphite presented less
wear than graphite electrodes, although worse results than
pure copper [59].
Klocke et al. [103] used bronze–graphite electrodes to
machine cemented carbide composites (WC–Co). It was
found that bronze-infiltrated electrodes are a cost-effective
alternative to machine carbides in comparison with cop-
per–tungsten. Surface finish of workpiece was found to be
better than copper–tungsten, resulting in a lower surface
roughness and thinner recast layer.
2.6 Tungsten
Tungsten is used in specific applications such as micro-EDM
due to its high density, tensile strength and high melting
point. On the other hand, it has a low electrical conductivity,
which leads to lower material removal rates. It is also dif-
ficult to machine and has a high cost. Table 6 presents some
of its physical properties.
Few authors used tungsten as electrodes for EDMachin-
ing. Sundaram et al. [28] reported that the tool wear and
the spark gap of tungsten electrodes are much lower than
copper–graphite when EDMachining XW42 tool steel. In
the work presented by Jahan et al. [41], tungsten electrodes
were used to micro-machine WC–Co under finishing con-
ditions and using different EDM parameters. The authors
reported that black spots were observed on the machined
surface as well as a higher concentration of carbon on
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 15 of 25  14
Table 6  Properties of tungsten [104]
Material
Density (g/cm3)
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm)
Thermal conductivity (W/mK)
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K)
Melting point (°C)
Specific heat (J/kg K)
it, when compared to CuW and AgW. Despite this fact,
tungsten electrodes showed the best tool wear rate (TWR)
compared to the other two electrodes investigated. Tung-
sten electrodes were also applied to modify the surface of
aluminum during micro-EDM [6]. Fu et al. [105] reported
better wear performance of tungsten electrodes when
machining AISI 304 stainless steel.
2.7 Silver
Silver is rarely used as an EDM material, but has the
advantage of having high electrical conductivity and struc-
tural integrity, being used when fine finishing surfaces are
desirable. Table 7 shows some properties of pure silver.
Electrical and thermal conductivities of silver are high,
superior even than copper, which make it suitable for using
EDM applications. But the combination of silver’s low
melting point, high thermal expansion coefficient and high
cost constraints its use as electrode.
Tsai and Masuzawa [107] studied the wear behavior
of different electrodes during micro-EDM of AISI 304
stainless steel and established an index for the evaluation
of wear resistance of electrodes. The authors found that
silver produced little corner wear and associated it with
its high thermal conductivity. Also machining AISI 304,
Santoki et al. [81] compared overcut of silver, copper and
graphite electrodes. It was found that silver achieved better
performance than graphite during low discharge currents
(finishing regime).
Table 7  Properties of silver [106]
Material
3 3
Density (g/cm )
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm)
Thermal conductivity (W/mK)
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K)
Melting point (°C)
Specific heat (J/kg K)
2.8 Silver tungsten (AgW)
W
Manufactured by the same process that copper tungsten
19.3 electrodes, silver tungsten is a powder metallurgy product
5.65 that combines the wear resistance of tungsten with the high
163 conductivity of silver, resulting in low wear and fine surface
4.4 finish. The range of applications is very limited because of
3370 the high cost to produce these materials. Table 8 shows the
134 properties of a typical silver–tungsten electrode (30%Ag
70%W). Comparing this table with the one presenting the
copper–tungsten properties, one can see that both materials
have similar properties.
As described above, Stampfl et al. [95] described a new
method for producing silver–tungsten electrodes, where sili-
con is used as a mold for hot pressing silver–tungsten. Simi-
lar results as those with copper–tungsten electrodes were
achieved. Silver–tungsten was used by Jahan et al. [97] as
electrode on the finishing die-sinking micro-EDM of tung-
sten carbide. Contrary to what was reported on the machined
surface when using CuW and W electrodes, an absence of
black spots was observed when using AgW electrodes, as
well as lower carbon content. AgW electrodes also achieved
the lowest surface roughness for all machining parameters
used. MRR was at an intermediate level when compared
to the other electrodes, but TWR was the highest of the
three materials testes. The authors concluded that AgW
electrodes are found to be capable of producing smooth
and shiny surfaces with negligible amount of surface defect
when micro-EDM of WC. Among the three electrodes, AgW
was chosen as the best choice for the finishing micro-EDM
of WC. Kadirvel et al. [109] compared different electrodes
during micro-EDM of EN24 die steel. AgW achieved better
removal rate when compared to CuW and W electrodes, but
inferior to copper electrodes.
2.9 Tungsten carbide
Tungsten carbide, due to its high stiffness and low wear
properties, can be used as electrode material in specific
applications, such as small hole EDM. As disadvantage,
tungsten carbide electrodes are very brittle and more
Table 8  Properties of silver–tungsten (30%Ag 70%W) [108]
Ag Material AgW
10.49 Density (g/cm ) 15.28
1.55 Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 3.45
419 Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 160
19.9 Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) –
9693 Melting point (°C) > 980
234 Specific heat (J/kg K) –
13
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Table 9  Properties of tungsten carbide [110]
Material WC
Density (g/cm3) 15.7
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 53–80
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 84.02
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 5.2–7.3
Decomposition temperature (°C) 2870
Specific heat (J/kg K) 171–203
expansive than copper or graphite electrodes. Table 9 pre-
sents thermal and electrical properties of WC.
Tungsten carbide is not so often used as EDM elec-
trode when compared to copper or graphite. Her and Weng
[25] used tungsten carbide and copper as electrodes to
machine a copper plate. They reported that with nega-
tive polarity tungsten carbide electrode presented the
highest MRR, although wear level was higher. The final
surface roughness of both materials was nearly the same
with negative polarity. Tungsten carbide is often used
for micro-EDM applications as reported by Hourmand
et al. [111]. D’Urso and Merla [46] performed an exten-
sive study on micro-EDM drilling of brass, magnesium,
AISI 304 stainless steel and titanium, applying tungsten
carbide electrodes and comparing with copper and brass.
The authors observed that WC electrodes performed best
in terms of TWR and surface of the micro-holes drilled.
In a later work, D’Urso et al. [99] evaluated the EDM of
WC and AISI 304 using tungsten–carbide electrodes and
compared to brass electrodes. The authors reported that
wear behavior of WC electrode was much lower than brass,
although MRR was lower. Also when machining AISI 304
stainless steel with WC electrodes, Bhaumik and Maity
[112] observed a major influence of discharge current and
duration on MRR and TWR. Fu et al. [105] compared WC
and W electrodes during micro-EDM drilling of AISI 304,
reporting that tungsten–carbide electrodes always achieved
higher wear when compared to tungsten.
Antar et al. [113] compared EDM and laser drilling per-
formance of Inconel 718. Tungsten carbide was used as
EDM electrode. EDM was found to be superior when hole
quality is precision are the main targets, while laser drilling
is a preferred process for speed. Huan et al. [114] performed
an optimization of parameter during micro-EDM milling of
Ti6Al4V using WC electrodes and WC with thick coating
of Cu, Ag, TiN and ZrN. The authors found that WC elec-
trode coated with Ag led to the highest material removal
rate, whereas WC–TiN coated reached best values for TWR.
In a similar work, Chiou et al. [115] observed best tool wear
behavior with WC electrodes when compared to WC–Cu-
coated and WC–Ag-coated electrodes during machining of
high-speed steel.
13
2.10 Aluminum
Aluminum electrode presents good electrical and thermal
conductivities, which make it suitable for EDM. On the
other hand, aluminum has a high linear expansion coef-
ficient, expanding more than other electrodes during
EDmachining, and a low melting point, which wear the
electrode more than with other electrodes. Such disad-
vantages restrict its use. Table 10 shows some properties
of pure aluminum.
Khan and Saifuddin [21] performed a comparative anal-
ysis with copper and aluminum electrodes during EDM
of stainless steel (AISI 304) and WC–Co. The authors
reported that aluminum produced a smoother surface
during machining of both workpiece materials, although
showed a poorer MRR and TWR than copper. When
machining EN31 tool steel, Singh et  al. [28] reported
higher MRR with Al electrode compared to brass and cop-
per–tungsten. Aluminum was used as electrode material to
observe the influence EDM parameters on various aspects
of the surface integrity when EDMachining of Ti6Al4V
[41]. It was observed that the use of aluminum as electrode
avoided surface cracks on the workpiece surface and the
best surface finish could be achieved when compared to
copper and graphite electrodes.
2.11 Tellurium–copper
According to Kern [6], the addition of 0.5–3% tellurium
to copper improves its machinability to a level similar to
brass, eliminating the gummy properties normally exhib-
ited by copper when it is machined or ground. However,
the EDM performance of copper is somewhat compro-
mised by the addition of the tellurium. Compared to elec-
trolytic copper, tellurium copper exhibits 15–25% higher
wear and 10% decreased metal removal rate. Nevertheless,
because of the ease of machining this material, most shops
are willing to accept this trade-off. Another disadvantage
of tellurium–copper is its scarcity.
Table 10  Properties of aluminum [116]
Material Aluminum
3
Density (g/cm ) 2.69
Electrical resistivity (µΩ cm) 2.7
Thermal conductivity (W/mK) 210
Linear expansion coefficient (× 10−6/K) 24
Melting point (°C) 660
Specific heat (J/kg K) 900
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 17 of 25  14
3 EDM electrodes manufactured by additive
manufacturing (AM)
The cost of a part manufactured by the EDM method is
determined mainly by the tool cost, which consists of the
raw material cost of the tool, the tool production cost and
the number of tools required for operation [3]. The major
cost and time spent in EDM is the electrode production,
which can account for over 50% of the total machining
costs [4]. The cost and time of manufacturing electrodes
is generally determined by the complexity of the geometry
and the accuracy required. EDM electrodes are generally
manufactured by conventional machining methods such
as stamping, coining, grinding, extrusion and more com-
monly, turning and milling. In the mold making industry
for example, where EDM is frequently applied, the mold
complexity is an industrial demand and this results in an
even more time-consuming and expensive electrode manu-
facturing. Hence, reducing the electrode manufacturing
time and costs will also reduce the component machining
time and costs.
Also, as the role of EDM is constantly being rede-
fined, due to new machining technologies, such as high-
speed milling, it is important to develop new technolo-
gies to maintain and improve the use of EDM in precision
mechanic industry. One aspect related to this is the pro-
duction of electrodes in a faster way.
According to Jha et al. [4], alternative methods for man-
ufacturing complex three-dimensional shapes include cast-
ing, electroforming or metal-spraying. Casting is mainly
used for Zn-based die casting, Al alloys and Zn–Sn alloys.
The technique has major manufacturing problems like
blowholes mismatching and micro-cracks.
Powder metallurgy (PM) presents an alternative manu-
facturing technique which is more economical and faster
than other conventional methods, since a large number of
EDM electrodes can be produced from a single die. A very
successful example is the manufacturing of CuW and AgW
electrodes, where tungsten particles are surrounded by a
conductive matrix. The physical properties of the part can
be controlled by the process variables such as compacting
pressure and sintering temperature. Constraints of the pro-
cess are the high energy dispended for sintering, especially
for high melting point alloys, pressure involved for pres-
sure-dependent processes, and the use of molds and dies.
Tang et al. [117] report that an alternative approach
for manufacturing EDM electrodes is the use of AM tech-
nologies. AM encompasses a group of manufacturing
techniques formerly known as rapid prototyping (RP) and
rapid tooling (RT), which provides the possibility of the
direct fabrication of EDM electrodes from three-dimen-
sional CAD models, especially for high complex geometry,
to reduce the lead time and processing costs. The CAD
design of the parts is first sliced by software into many thin
layers. These layers are then used as templates to build a
solid model, layer-by-layer until the object is built.
Altan et al. [118] report that the production of EDM elec-
trodes by AM has been carried out concurrently to the AM
development itself. It can be divided in two main categories:
indirect methods and direct methods. The main difference
is that the indirect methods need intermediate processes to
achieve the desired final part whereas the direct method
claims no use of intermediate processes.
Indirect methods were extensively applied to the EDM
electrode manufacturing using nonconductive materials.
Arthur et al. [119] used stereolithography (SL) to produce
silver painted epoxy models that were electroplated with
copper. The authors concluded that it is possible to make
limited use of thin coated SL models as electrodes for EDM.
Yarlagadda et al. [120] studied the viability of using an
electroformed shell of copper as an EDM electrode. Silicon
rubber was processed by stereolithography and electrofor-
med with copper. EDM experiments showed that the elec-
troformed tools are not recommended for rough machining
because it can deform the tool. Semi-roughing to finishing
machining operations may be undertaken using these tools.
In this respect, Yang and Leu [121] also combined stereo-
lithography and electroforming to produce EDM electrodes.
The difference was the use of an intermediate metallization,
where SL parts were electroless plated prior to electroform-
ing. According to the authors, the integration of electro-
forming with SL is a feasible way for rapid tooling of EDM
electrodes.
Another interesting research line consists of using the
ThermoJet instead of the SL technique, which leads to better
build times, as it was demonstrated by Rennie et al. [122].
The authors compared both RP techniques to manufacture
electroformed EDM electrodes and concluded that both
techniques lead to similar results in regard to dimensional
accuracy of the processes and EDM performance of the
electrodes.
A research was performed by Dimla et al. [123] to assess
the suitability of electrodes created by electroplating copper
onto SL model with a complex geometry. The authors con-
cluded that the electroplating process was unable to deposit
enough copper in the inner cavities of the electrodes, with
gradual reduction in copper layer thickness from the outer
to the inner walls of the part. These coating thickness vari-
ations established the electrodes as unsuitable for the EDM
process.
Indirect selective laser sintering (SLS) is also applied
to produce EDM electrodes. A very interesting example of
this research line is the work carried out by Stucker et al.
[124] where the manufacturing and EDM experimenting of
composite electrodes was evaluated. The authors used Z ­ rB2
13
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Page 18 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
powder coated with a polymer binder and processed with
SLS to obtain a green part. The parts were subsequently
post-processed to remove the polymer from the part and
infiltrated with copper to produce a high-density elec-
trode. EDM experimenting was then performed with the
electrodes, comparing their performance parameters with
copper and graphite electrode materials for different EDM
machining conditions. Results showed that the Z ­ rB2–Cu
electrode is the most effective, since its material removal
rate and volumetric relative wear were higher than the com-
pared materials.
Zhao et al. [125] also described an indirect method of
EDM electrode fabrication by SLS. The material used was
a multi-component powder composed of steel, polyester
and phosphate. The powder system was processed by SLS
and a three-step post-treatment was used to improve den-
sity of the SLS made parts, which consisted of low- and
high-temperature sintering and final infiltration with cop-
per. EDM experimenting under different regimes proved that
the wear of the electrodes approaches to that of commonly
used electrode materials and acceptable surface roughness
can be found. More recently fused deposition modeling was
applied to produce ABS parts that were electroplated with
copper [126, 127].
Regarding direct methods for producing EDM electrodes,
the major research work is focused on using SLS. Dürr et al.
[128] evaluated the effect of process parameters on the direct
SLS of an electrode made of bronze, nickel and copper phos-
phate. The authors found a direct relation between laser scan
speed and porosity and an unclear influence of the scan line
spacing. Also, EDM experiments conducted with electrodes
of different porosities showed that both material removal
rate and volumetric relative wear increased for electrodes
with less porosity.
The work conducted by Tay and Haider [129] compared
two forms of plating a copper alloy electrode. The authors
used direct SLS as a base process for all electrodes, and fur-
ther plated the electrodes with electroless copper and elec-
troplating methods. EDM experiments were performed for
roughing, semi-roughing and finishing conditions, compar-
ing electroplated, electroless and untreated electrodes with
solid copper electrodes. Results showed that for roughing
and semi-roughing regimes, untreated electrodes are suit-
able, but its performance is inferior to the electroplated and
electroless electrodes. For finishing regimes, only the copper
electroplated electrodes achieved the desired performance.
A similar research was carried out by Dimla et al. [123]
where a bronze alloy was directly produced by SLS and sub-
sequently electroplated with copper. The electrodes were
found unsuitable for EDM applications, since there was not
enough copper deposition in the electrodes.
Later, Meena and Nagahanumaiah [130] using the same
bronze alloy to directly SLS produce, optimized the EDM
13
machining parameters by means of gray relational analysis
together with Taguchi Method. The authors found out that
discharge current is the most influencing parameter on the
EDM process. Also, excessive electrode wear was reported,
with the porosity of the electrodes the main cause of it.
As shown in the related work, there are many variations
of producing EDM electrodes by AM and each has its fea-
tures and limitations. Specifically, the direct SLS or selective
laser melting technique has as its key point the ability to
produce complex shape parts without the need of tooling and
the elimination of time-consuming pre-processing and post-
processing when compared to other methods [131]. On the
other hand, both SLS/SLM and EDM processes are strongly
dependent on the materials used, in such way that the EDM
electrode material processed by SLS/SLM must be selected
considering both processes demands. In this context, metal
matrix composite materials are a potential alternative to
unify the desired properties of different materials in an EDM
electrode directly processed by SLS.
According to Kumar and Kruth [132], even though the
direct fabrication of composites in SLS/SLM has been car-
ried out by various authors their application in EDM as elec-
trodes is very scarce. Sahu et al. [133] produced AlSiMg
electrodes by means of SLS and compared their perfor-
mance with copper and graphite electrodes during EDM of
nitinol. The authors found that the SLS-produced electrodes
achieved better surface quality than conventional electrodes
in finishing conditions.
Molybdenum has also been applied in EDM applications.
Molybdenum lays in the tables second transition series, in
group 6A, between chromium and tungsten and is classi-
fied as a refractory metal, because it has one of the high-
est melting temperatures of all elements and a low thermal
expansion coefficient. Allied with a thermal conductivity
that exceeds most of other metals and a relatively low den-
sity (lower than tungsten or tantalum for example) make
them attractive for high-temperature applications as reported
by Tietz and Wilson [134]. Regarding its use as an EDM
electrode molybdenum alone cannot provide good EDM
performance as electrode. Similar to tungsten, molybdenum
alone can reach good results concerning electrode wear, but
its material removal rate will be low, due to its low electri-
cal conductivity, when compared to copper and graphite for
example. The addition of a material with good electrical and
thermal properties would enhance the molybdenum features
as an EDM electrode.
Matrices used in molybdenum composites include nickel,
aluminum, silicon, copper, mullite and silver [135–140].
Nickel and silicon have poor electrical and thermal conduc-
tivities, which make them not suitable to form a metal base
in EDM applications. Aluminum, although has interesting
thermal and electrical properties, has a low melting point,
and if used as a base for a molybdenum electrode, a higher
Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14 Page 19 of 25  14
wear can be expected. Mullite is a ceramic and an electrical
and thermal insulator; hence, it cannot be used as a matrix
for molybdenum. Although copper and silver have similar
properties, with the latter being superior regarding thermal
and electrical conductivities, silver is more expansive than
copper. In this context, copper appears as the most suitable
matrix material to be used as a base for molybdenum com-
posites in EDM applications. The process to produce cop-
per–molybdenum composites is well known and similar to
that of copper–tungsten manufacture. Yih and Chung [141]
gave a detailed description of this composite, evaluating
their properties for a wide range of reinforcement contents.
The application of Mo–Cu composites as EDM electrodes
is described by Amorim et al. [142] where SLS was used as
manufacturing method and interesting results were obtained
regarding the effect of the main SLS variables on the densi-
fication and porosity of the parts and also the role of Ni as
wetting agent was investigated. EDM performance evalu-
ated in terms of MRR and TWR was inferior to electrolytic
copper, but the authors remarked that the EDM conditions
applied during the tests were optimal for copper electrodes
and further research was necessary to optimize EDM param-
eters for Mo–Cu electrodes.
Advanced ceramics can also be applied in EDM applica-
tions. Titanium diboride ­(TiB2) is an advanced ceramic well
known for its stiffness and hardness. In contrast to other
ceramics, it is electrically and thermally conductive, which
make them suitable for being EDMed. This ceramic has also
high melting point, which make it resistance to thermal wear,
interesting feature for EDM applications as electrode. One
disadvantage of this material is its resistance to sinter, due to
its covalent bounds. This can difficult the densification of the
same, compromising its properties. Hence the densification
process of this ceramic is made by isostatic hot pressing or
hot pressing. Dense parts can also be achieved with pressure-
less sintering, but it requires the addition of other sintering
aid elements, such as iron, chromium and nickel.
Regarding the use of this material as an EDM electrode,
it can be seen that, alone, the same is not suitable for this
application. Although a high electrode wear resistance (high
melting point) can be expected from this material, his ther-
mal and electrical conductivities are low if compared to
metals. On the other hand, the combination of this material
with metals (metal matrix composites) can lead to interest-
ing properties for EDM applications, as the addition of tita-
nium diboride in a metal with high thermal and electrical
conductivities will enhance wear properties, while reducing
the thermal and electrical conductivities much less than the
addition of other ceramic reinforcement [143].
Metals matrices used for titanium diboride composites
include aluminum, ­Al22Fe3Ti8, intermetallic compounds,
iron, nickel, copper and bronze [143–149]. From these
matrices, copper is well known to have the best properties
for being used as EDM electrode, due to its high electrical
and thermal conductivities.
Previous works on copper-matrix T ­ iB 2 composites
include the one made by Joo et al. [149] where they used
­TiB2 in the form of a sintered porous block, with approxi-
mately 50–80% of theoretical density, and infiltrated it with
liquid copper, obtaining interesting properties for thermal
and also mechanical applications. Leong et al. [150] stud-
ied the in situ formation of ­TiB2 and TiC as reinforcements
under the laser sintering process where, in the powder sys-
tem, Ti may react with B ­ 4C to form T­ iB2 and TiC. The study
showed that the porosity is the main issue in the composite
parts and it is mainly attributed to two main factors: the
high reflectivity of laser by the Cu matrix and the poor wet-
ting between Cu and reinforcement. Microstructure results
showed that the scanning speed allied with a low laser
power resulted in a very homogenous part. The importance
of appropriate wettability was assessed, which depends on
the availability of electrons to participate in the bonding
between ceramic and metal. Addition of Ni was adopted to
improve the liquid-phase sintering and hence to decrease
the porosity to an almost full dense sample. Yih and Chung
[143] evaluated the properties of Cu–TiB2 composite and
the optimal content of reinforcement necessary to enhance
its properties.
Amorim et al. [151] investigated the direct production
of EDM electrodes by means of the SLS technique using
a new non-conventional metal matrix composite material
­(TiB2-CuNi). The influence and optimization of the main
SLS parameters on densification behavior and porosity were
experimentally assessed. EDM experiments were also per-
formed to evaluate the electrodes performance. The experi-
mental results showed that the direct SLS manufacturing
of composite electrodes was feasible, with laser scan speed
having a major influence on densification behavior. Com-
pared to LS copper electrodes, ­TiB2–CuNi achieved a much
superior performance in terms of MRR and TWR.
Zirconium diboride (­ZrB2) is a member of a family
of materials known as ultra high-temperature ceramics
(UHTCs) [152]. It presents a unique combination of high
melting point, high thermal and electrical conductivity,
chemical inertness against molten metals and thermal shock
resistance [153]. Such properties make this ceramic impor-
tant for applications where thermal wear resistance is desir-
able, such as in the foundry, electrical devices, nozzle and
armor industries. Its high electrical conductivity allows the
manufacturing of complex shaped by EDM.
Comparing the properties of zirconium and titanium
diboride, one can see that both materials are similar, with zir-
conium diboride having superior electrical conductivity and
melting point, as well as a better thermal expansion coefficient.
Like ­TiB2, the sintering of zirconium diboride powder is dif-
ficult, due to its high melting point and high vapor pressure
13
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Page 20 of 25 Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering (2019) 41:14
of the constituents [154]. Hence, the most common manufac-
turing process regarding these materials are hot pressing and
isostatic hot pressing. The addition of properly sintering aids
such as Fe, Ni, Co, W, C, WC can enhance the sinterability of
this ceramic, improving the density and reducing the densifica-
tion temperature. Additionally, highly dense materials can be
obtained through liquid-phase sintering at temperatures lower
than those necessary for undoped ­ZrB2.
Similar to titanium diboride, zirconium diboride alone is
not suitable as an EDM material, because of its poor thermal
and electrical properties, when compared to other metals. The
addition of a matrix with high thermal and electrical conduc-
tivities can increase the feasibility of this material as an EDM
electrode. Copper again appears as a suitable candidate to be
used as a matrix for ­ZrB2 due to the properties already cited.
Attempts to produce this composite for EDM applications
were made by Zaw et al. [155] by means of normal sintering.
They reported an electrode wear between that of copper and
graphite and a low material removal rate. Khanra et al. [156]
used pressureless sintering to produce ­ZrB2–Cu materials, for
a variety of copper contents, and reported an electrode per-
formance superior to that of pure copper, although the sur-
face quality was worse. Important to notice is that none of the
related works studied the direct SLS processing of Z ­ rB2-based
composites. Stucker et al. [124] by means of indirect SLS and
normal sintering process, manufactured copper-based zir-
conium diboride electrode that achieved better results than
copper, graphite and W–Cu electrodes regarding wear and
material removal rate. Czelusniak et al. [157] applied SLS to
directly manufacture Z ­ rB2–CuNi EDM electrodes. The authors
compared EDM performance at roughing, semi-finishing and
finishing regime with LS copper electrodes and electrolytic
copper. Results show that MRR using ­ZrB2–CuNi was supe-
rior than solid copper during semi-finishing conditions.
Uhlman et al. [158] applied selective laser melting (SLM)
to produce tungsten carbide (WC–Co) composite electrodes
and evaluated the effect of hot isostatic pressing (HIP) post-
processing on electrode performance. Material removal rate
and electrode wear were superior with the electrodes pro-
cessed by SLM followed by HIP compared to direct SLM.
The authors credited such effect to the better rearrangement
of cobalt particles. In a similar study, the same authors com-
pared SLM electrodes with standard copper and graphite
electrodes, concluding that the SLM of WC–Co still needs
improvement but showed potential for EDM applications
[159].
4 Conclusions
Electrical discharge machining (EDM) has become one of
the most important production technologies to manufac-
ture very accurate three-dimensional complex components
13
on any electrical conductive material. Through a consist-
ent literature review, it was described in this work the most
common materials used as EDM electrodes, as well as their
performances when EDMachining different workpiece mate-
rials; furthermore some materials that have potential to be
used as EDM electrodes. There is few literature related to the
manufacturing of EDM electrode by means AM. A review
of AM techniques as well as the manufacturing of EDM
electrodes by this technology was also performed. It can be
concluded that: (1) when selecting an electrode material,
one has to keep in mind the properties that influence the
EDM process. Materials with high electrical conductivity
and high thermal conductivity are suitable as tool electrodes,
as well as materials with high melting and boiling points are
adequate to be used as EDM electrodes; (2) the material’s
structural integrity (i.e., how well the material responds to
hundreds of thousands of sparks on its surface) will be a
significant factor in determining the electrode material‘s
performance; (3) the material’s mechanical properties (i.e.,
tensile strength, grain size and hardness) will affect both
the fabrication of the electrode, and its performance in the
EDM process; (4) the material’s manufacturability (i.e., the
usefulness of an electrode material is somewhat determined
by the difficulty of manufacturing electrodes from it) such
as factors like machinability, stability and burr formation
and removal; will influence on electrode cost as well as
on the workpiece dimensional accuracy. In regard to AM
technology, it can be concluded that SLS/SLM and EDM
processes are strongly dependent on the materials used, in
such a way that the EDM electrode material processed by
SLS/SLM must be selected considering the demands of both
processes. In this context, metal matrix composite materials
are a potential alternative to unify the desired properties of
different materials in an EDM electrode directly processed
by SLS/SLM. Future steps toward the use of such materials
as EDM electrodes involve researching the feasibility to use
these materials by the SLS/SLM process, having as theoreti-
cal background the liquid-phase sintering and the wettability
of metals and ceramics.
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