CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology 65 (2016) 225–228

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CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology

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Study on influences of bubbles on ECM gap phenomena using transparent

electrode
Tomoyuki Shimasaki, Masanori Kunieda (1)*
Department of Precision Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Japan

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: To understand the influences of bubbles generated in the machining gap on stability and accuracy of
Electro chemical machining (ECM)
electrochemical machining, gap phenomena were observed directly using a transparent electrode made
Electrode
of SiC single crystal, which is electrically conductive and optically transparent. The criterion of boiling for
Bubble
electrolyte was obtained from both experiment and heat transfer analysis, and the relationship between
the occurrence of electric discharge and the volume fraction of bubbles in the gap was clarified. The
influences of the rotation of the tool electrode and the radial flow of electrolyte in the gap on the
machining accuracy were also investigated.
ß 2016 CIRP.

1. Introduction
In electrochemical machining (ECM), bubbles and dissolution
products are generated, and these affect the electrical conductivity
of the electrolyte. Moreover, the electrolyte is heated intensely by
the Joule heat generated due to the high current density.
Consequently, the electrical conductivity is not uniform in the
inter-electrode gap because of the change in bubble fraction and
temperature rise in the electrolyte. Since the workpiece shape is
determined by the current density distribution, which is influ-
enced by the electrical conductivity, both the bubble fraction and
temperature need to be considered for the accurate simulation of
the workpiece shape [1]. Hence, Kozak et al. [2] proposed a one-
dimensional model to determine the machining parameters of
pulse electrochemical machining (PECM), such as pulse on-time,
taking into account the dependence of conductivity of the two-
phase working fluid on temperature and bubble fraction. Varying
the curvature of the electrode shape widely, Chang et al. [3] and
Klocke et al. [4] performed a two-dimensional two-phase thermal-
fluid analysis to predict the optimum tool shape for the required
workpiece shape. The bubble diameter used to calculate the
friction force between the electrolyte phase and hydrogen phase
was assumed to be constant, but in reality, every generated bubble
grows in size and coalesces each other. For this reason, the bubble
diameter is not uniform along the electrolyte flow lines. Hence,
direct observation of the inter-electrode gap is necessary for more
accurate simulation. Thus, Klocke et al. [4] and Rebschläger et al.
[5] took images of the gap using a high speed video camera from
the direction parallel to the electrode surfaces to capture the
workpiece shape and the gap width distribution in process.
However, they had difficulty observing the behavior of bubbles in
* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: kunieda@edm.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp (M. Kunieda).
the gap due to its narrowness. On the other hand, in electrical
discharge machining (EDM), Kitamura et al. [6] observed bubbles
generated by discharge through a transparent electrode made of
SiC single crystal and obtained a relationship between the
discharge locations and the bubbles occupying a large amount
of space in the gap. Zhang et al. [7] used that transparent electrode
for the first time to observe the ECM gap and found that the gap is
filled with bubbles within several ms in a stationary electrolyte
because bubbles are generated not only by the hydrogen
generation due to the electrochemical reaction on the cathode,
but also by the boiling of electrolyte.
Thus, this study is aimed to calculate the time when the
electrolyte starts boiling in the ECM gap in a stationary electrolyte
and clarify the relationship between the increase in the bubble
fraction and the occurrence of discharge, which must be avoided in
ECM processes. The influences of the rotation of the tool electrode
and radial flow of electrolyte supplied into the gap on the bubble
behavior were observed to understand the effects of electrode
rotation and electrolyte flushing on machining accuracy.
2. ECM with stationary electrolyte
2.1. Experimental setup and equipment
First, the influence of electrolyte concentration on the rate of
bubble generation was investigated under constant machining
current. Fig. 1 shows the experimental setup. A transparent disk
electrode made of SiC single crystal semiconductor wafer of
0.37 mm in thickness and carbon steel (S45C) rod of 6 mm in
diameter were used as the cathode and anode, respectively. The
magnified image of the working gap was taken through the
transparent electrode using a high-speed video camera. The gap
width between the cathode and anode was 100 mm. The
electrolyte used was NaNO3 aqueous solution with two different
concentrations, 5 wt% and 30 wt%. Pulse current generated by a

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cirp.2016.04.026
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high speed bipolar power supply was supplied to the gap with
electrolytic current of 10 A and pulse duration of 20 ms. Machining
was performed under the stationary electrolyte without flushing.
Fig. 1. Experimental equipment.
2.2. Observation of gap phenomena
Fig. 2(a) and (b) shows the images of the working gap observed
with electrolyte concentration of 5 wt% and 30 wt%, respectively.
Fig. 3(a) and (b) shows the voltage waveforms. Since the specific
resistance of the single crystal SiC used in the present work was
0.02 Vcm [6], which is significantly higher than the metallic
materials, the measured voltage involves the potential drop across
the SiC electrode of around 20 V. Under the same preset peak
current, the quantity of hydrogen generated by electrochemical
reduction over the cathode surface should be the same. Hence, the
gap phenomena were the same in both the conditions until 2 ms.
Thereafter, however, more bubbles were generated when using
electrolyte of 5 wt% compared to 30 wt%. With 5 wt%, the gap
voltage increased drastically after 2 ms. Since the current was
constant in this experiment, lower electrical conductivity due to
lower electrolyte concentration resulted in higher Joule heat,
suggesting a significant difference in the bubble generation rate
caused by the thermal effects of the boiling of the electrolyte.
Fig. 2. Influence of electrolyte concentration on generation rate of bubbles in
stationary electrolyte with 100 mm gap width, 10 A current, and 20 ms pulse
duration. (a) 5 wt%; (b) 30 wt%.
Fig. 3. Influence of electrolyte concentration on gap voltage. (a) 5 wt%; (b) 30 wt%.
Depletion of electrolyte occurred quicker with 5 wt%. However,
electrolyte did not completely disappear, and the cycle of expansion
and contraction of the area occupied by bubbles was repeated
periodically after 6 ms. Accordingly, the gap voltage was varying
cyclically with the same period. The voltage increased when the area
of bubbles expanded, and decreased when it shrank. The reason for
this is thought to be as follows: When the gap is filled with vapors
due to boiling, since current cannot flow through the frontal gap, it
flows from outside the frontal gap through the side surface of the rod
electrode. Since Joule heat is not generated, the gap cools and the
vapors condense, thereby the electrolyte flows back into the gap
resulting in the voltage drop. This causes joule heat to increase again
in the frontal gap and this cycle repeats over time.
2.3. Analysis
2.3.1. Outline of analysis
Kozak et al. [2] calculated the time until the electrolyte starts
boiling, assuming that all the Joule heated energy is used for raising
the temperature of the electrolyte. They attributed the decrease of
the thermal capacity of the electrolyte to the increase in the bubble
fraction, but did not take into account the heat conduction into the
electrodes. Moreover, they also ignored heat transfer due to
convection of the electrolyte drained from the gap by the
generation of hydrogen gas, as well as the latent heat for
vaporization. We, therefore, investigated the effects of the
electrolyte concentration on temperature rise in this study, taking
into consideration all the above factors.
2.3.2. Thermal model of gap
The bubbles generated in the ECM gap are thought to be
composed of hydrogen gas generated on the cathode and water
vapor vaporized from the electrolyte. Hydrogen is generated due to
the electrochemical reaction on the cathode.
2Hþ þ 2e ! H2 (1)
From Faraday’s low and gas state equation, its volume rate of
generation is expressed as,
dvH2 I RT gap
¼  (2)
dt 2F Po
where vH2 is volume of hydrogen gas, I is gap current, F is Faraday
constant, Tgap is electrolyte temperature, and Po is atmospheric
pressure.
Fig. 4. Simulation model of gap. (a) Before boiling; (b) after boiling.
Fig. 4(a) shows the thermal model of the gap before the boiling
of the electrolyte. Taking the inter-electrode gap to be the control
volume, Joule heat per volume q˙ is generated due to the current
flowing through the gap. A portion of this heat is used for raising
the electrolyte temperature, another portion is lost due to the heat
transfer to the SiC and steel electrodes i.e. q00SiC and q00St , respectively
and the remaining is convected out of the gap i.e. q0conv . Assuming
that the electrolyte temperature Tgap is uniform in the control
volume, its time variation is expressed as,
dT gap q_ vðtÞpr 2 ðq00St þ q00SiC Þq0conv
¼ (3)
dt cgap rgap vðtÞ
where pr2 is the surface area of electrodes, and cgap, rgap, and v(t)
are the specific heat, density, and volume of electrolyte. Joule heat
in the gap qyðtÞ is equal to IV, where the gap voltage V was assumed
˙
to be constant at 6 V and 20 V with the concentration of 30% and
5%, respectively, based on the measured results.
Fig. 4(b) shows the model after the electrolyte temperature
reaches the boiling point. Tgap remains constant at 100 8C. Joule
heat is partially dissipated as the latent heat of vaporization, lost
due to heat transfer to electrodes and heat loss due to convection.
Hence, volume rate of vapor generation is expressed as
dvH2 O q_ vðtÞpr 2 ðq00St þ q00SiC Þq0conv RT gap
¼  (4)
dt cp Po M
where vH2 O is the volume of water vapor, cp is the latent heat of
vaporization, and M is the molecular weight of water.
The volume of electrolyte decreases with the generation of
bubbles. The volume of fluid flowing out of the gap is equal to the
volume of bubbles generated. Assuming the volume fraction of
electrolyte to be uniform in the control volume, the decreasing rate
of the volume of electrolyte is expressed as,
 
dvðtÞ vðtÞ dvH2 dvH2 O
¼ þ (5)
dt vgap dt dt
where vgap is the volume of the gap. Then, the rate of heat loss due
to convection, q0conv , can be expressed by the following equation.
 
dvðtÞ
q0conv ¼ cgap rgap   T gap (6)
dt
 T. Shimasaki, M. Kunieda / CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology 65 (2016) 225–228
2.3.3. Thermal model of electrodes
Fig. 5 shows the simulation model for the unsteady one-
dimensional heat conduction analysis in the electrodes. Boundary
conditions were that the temperature of the surface contacting the
electrolyte is equal to the temperature of electrolyte Tgap and the
opposite side surface is at room temperature, 25 8C. Heat
conduction in electrodes is expressed as,
@T @2 T
¼a 2
@t @x
where T is temperature of the electrode and a is thermal
diffusivity.
Using the temperature gradient in the depth direction x on the
surface of electrolyte, the heat flux from the electrolyte to the
electrode is expressed by the following Fourier equation.
dT
q00 ¼ k
dx
where k is thermal conductivity.
Initial conditions were that both electrolyte and electrodes are
at room temperature and the gap is filled with the electrolyte.
Using the finite difference method, Eqs. (2)–(8) were solved
simultaneously. Table 1 shows the thermophysical properties used
in this analysis. The density of the electrolyte was obtained from
measurement. The thermal conductivity and specific heat of the
electrolyte were assumed to be equal to those of water for
simplicity. It was also assumed that these properties were constant
during machining. In reality, however, these properties may
change during machining because the composition and concen-
tration of the electrolyte vary.
Table 1
Thermophysical properties of electrodes.
S45C SiC
Thermal 45.0 490 0.65
conductivity
k [W/mK]
Density 7840 3217 1.03  103 (5%)
r [kg/m3]
Specific heat 490 670 4180
c [J/kg K]
Fig. 5. Thermal model in electrodes.
2.3.4. Result of analysis
Fig. 6 shows the time change of the electrolyte temperature. It is
found that the temperature rises quickly and the electrolyte starts
boiling earlier when the concentration is 5 wt%. Fig. 7 shows the
volume fraction of the electrolyte in the gap. It can be seen that the
volume fraction of the electrolyte begins to decrease immediately
after the start of machining. Since the same volume rate of
hydrogen is generated under the same current, the volume fraction
decreases at the same speed independent of the concentration.
When the electrolyte starts boiling, the fraction suddenly drops to
zero and the gap is filled with bubbles. Boiling starts earlier when
concentration is 5 wt% than 30 wt%, because the Joule heat
generated is larger when concentration is lower.
Computation results show that the volume fraction of electro-
lyte can decrease to 0 due to boiling. Actually, the fraction did not
become zero because of the self-excited vibration of bubbles
mentioned previously. In the case of 5 wt% concentration, the
analytically obtained time of the start of boiling agreed with the
experimental result. However, in the case of 30 wt%, the analytical
result shows that the timing is earlier than the experimental result.
This is probably because the boundary condition that the electrode
surface temperature must be equal to the temperature of
electrolyte is not correct when the volume fraction of electrolyte
is low, or because the density and specific heat of electrolyte
change due to boiling. In whichever case, it was found that pulse
widths longer than several milliseconds are not appropriate for the
stationary electrolyte.
227
(7) Fig. 6. Change of electrolyte
Fig. 7. Reduction in volume fraction of
temperature.
electrolyte.
2.4. Criteria of discharge occurrence
Discharge during ECM must be prevented because it damages
the workpiece surface. Hence, the occurrence of discharge was
observed using the transparent electrode, using two kinds of
(8)
electrolyte concentrations and four kinds of gap widths ranging
from 10 mm to 100 mm with 30 mm increment.
Fig. 8 shows the gap voltage waveform and image of discharge
ignited with the gap width of 40 mm and 5 wt% concentration.
After machining started, the gap voltage increased with the
increase in the volume fraction of bubbles. When the voltage
reached the dielectric breakdown voltage at 8.15 ms, discharge
occurred, causing the gap voltage to drop instantly. This change in
the voltage waveform agrees with the reports by Liu et al. [8]. The
discharge lasted until the end of the pulse, and the discharge spot
moved around over the electrode surface, and it was often
observed that the discharge spot was split into plural points.
Table 2 summarizes the possibility of discharge occurrence. It is
found that lower concentration and shorter gap width are likely to
cause discharge. This is because the volume fraction of bubbles
increases faster with lower concentration as stated in the previous
Electrolyte paragraph, and with shorter gap width as observed by Zhang et al.
[7]. The higher electric field with smaller gap width is another
reason for the higher probability of discharge.
1.24  103 (30%)
Table 2
Possibility of discharge occurrence.
Latent heat:
Concentration Gap width [mm]
2250 [kJ/kg]
of electrolyte
[%]
10 40 70 100
5 U U – –
30 – – – –
U, occurrence; –, no occurrence.
Fig. 8. Change of gap voltage due to
discharge occurrence.
3. Effect of electrode rotation
Bilgi and Jadhav [9] found that rotation of tool electrode can
enhance the surface finish of PECM. Thus, the influences of the
electrode rotation on gap phenomena were investigated using the
setup shown in Fig. 1. The anode rod electrode was rotated at
3000 rpm. The machining conditions are shown in Table 3. Fig. 9
shows the image of the gap at 39.6 s after the start of machining
using the pulse voltage shown in the figure. It was found that the gap
voltage is significantly stable compared to the case of the stationary
electrolyte. However, bubbles are localized at the rotation axis. As a
result, the voltage peak of each pulse increased under constant
current conditions. This is because the centrifugal force acting on the
electrolyte is greater than that acting on bubbles due to the
difference in mass. Hence, the electrode rotation was not useful for
removing the bubbles from the gap under the present conditions.
With the electrode rotation, current density becomes low near
the center of the electrode surface where bubbles are concentrated.
For this reason, the material near the center area is thought to be
228 T. Shimasaki, M. Kunieda / CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology 65 (2016) 225–228
removed less than the peripheral area. Thus, a carbon steel plate
(S45C) was machined using a rod electrode with and without
rotation. Fig. 10 shows the cross-sectional shapes of the workpiece
measured using a surface contour measuring equipment. Without
rotation, the bottom of the hole machined was flat, whereas with
rotation, the bottom shape was convex. This raises the concern that
the machining accuracy may be deteriorated due to electrode
rotation. In EDM however, electrode rotation is effective for
realizing stable machining. It is thus widely used for drilling holes
with high aspect ratio [10]. Electrode rotation is effective because
EDM is a thermal process.
Table 3
Experimental conditions with rotating electrode.
Polarity Gap width [mm] Current [A] Pulse width [ms] Electrolyte
SiC () 400 4 50 NaCl (aq)
S45C (+) 5 wt%
Fig. 9. Bubbles in gap with rotation of electrode.
Fig. 10. Shape machined by ECM with and without electrode rotation.
4. Effect of flushing flow
Flushing electrolyte from the hollow space of a cylindrical pipe
electrode is a useful method for removing bubbles and dissolution
products from the gap. However, it is known that flow marks are
often formed along the radial direction on the workpiece surface,
and they deteriorate the machining accuracy. Thus, gap phenom-
ena with flushing flow were observed using the setup shown in
Fig. 1. A through hole of 2 mm in diameter was drilled at the center
of the cylindrical anode to supply the radial flushing flow over the
end surface. Fig. 11 shows the image of the gap and voltage
waveform obtained under the machining conditions shown in
Table 4. Most of the bubbles were flushed out smoothly due to the
radial flow and the voltage was almost constant. Thus, it was
confirmed that machining can be stabilized by flushing flow.
However, Fig. 11 shows that some large bubbles, elongated in the
radial direction, stay continuously on the surface regardless of the
electrolytic current being switched on or off. It is considered that
these bubbles were generated due to the effect of cavitation. In
Fig. 11. Bubbles generated by cavitation due to electrolyte flushing.
radial diffuser flows, the pressure near the central hole can be
negative when the fluid velocity is high [11]. Since the bubbles
block the electrolytic current, electrolyte flushing with excessively
high velocity can worsen machining accuracy.
Table 4
Machining conditions with flushing flow.
Polarity Gap width [mm] Current [A] Pulse width [ms] Electrolyte Flow rate [ml/s]
SiC () 50 10 20 NaCl (aq) 6.0
S45C (+) 5 wt%
5. Conclusions
Rotating speed [rpm]
3000 Pulse ECM gap phenomena under constant current conditions
were observed using transparent electrodes made of SiC single
crystal as cathode. The following conclusions were obtained.
1) With lower electrolyte concentration, since the generated Joule
heat is higher, the electrolyte starts boiling earlier.
2) For stationary electrolytes, pulse widths longer than several
milliseconds are not appropriate because the gap is filled with
bubbles within several milliseconds due to electrolyte boiling.
3) The probability of discharge occurrence increases when the gap
is filled with bubbles because the gap voltage rises.
4) There is a possibility that the electrode rotation deteriorates the
machining precision because bubbles are captured at the center
of rotation due to centrifugal force.
5) Flushing flow with excessively high velocity deteriorates the
machining precision because bubbles are generated due to the
effects of cavitation.
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by the Cross-Ministerial Strategic
Innovation Promotion Program (SIP): Innovative Design/
Manufacturing Technologies, funded by NEDO. The authors are
grateful to Hamada Heavy Industries Ltd. and Hoden Seimitsu
Kakokenkyusho Co., Ltd. for their kind support in conducting the
experiments.
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