Bahir Dar Institute of

Technology

Faculty of Mechanical &

Industrial Engineering

Manufacturing Eng.
M.Sc. Program
Graduate Seminar on Abrasive Jet
Machining (AJM)

By: Motbaynor Atnafu

  Outline
Introduction
Problem Statement
Objective
Components of AJM
Working Principle
Comparison to other Machining
Conclusion and recommendation
 What is abrasive jet machining ?
 It is the material removal process where
the material is removed by high velocity
stream of air/gas or water and abrasive
mixture .
 An abrasive is small, hard particle having
sharp edges and an irregular shape .
 High velocity jet is aimed at a surface
under controller condition .
  Problem Statement
 Selection of optimum machining
parameter combination for obtaining
higher cutting efficiency and accuracy is a
challenging task in AJM due to
involvement of large number interacting
process variables.
 simultaneous optimization of cutting
efficiency and accuracy is still difficult by
the cause of Material Removal Rate
(MRR) and Surface Roughness (SR).
  Main Objective
The main objective of this paper is to discuss about AJM and

optimization of multiple performance characteristics of AJM.

Specific Objective
To
identify the basic Components and Working principles of
AJM.
To identify Process parameters and their influence on AJM
To determine Abrasive Material Used
To Compare with other unconventional Machining Process
To know optimal parametric combination for MRR and
surface roughness of the desired workpiece.
  Components of AJM

Abrasive delivery system

Control system
Pump
Nozzle
Mixing tube
Motion system
1. abrasive delivery system

Auto abrasive delivery system has the

capability of storing abrasive &
delivery the abrasive to the bucket .
It’s works auto programming system
by help of once measuring record &
no adjustment or fine tuning system .
High sensitive sensor gives extremely
reliable & repeatable .
2.Control system
The control algorithm that computes exactly
how the feed rate should vary for a given
geometry in a given material to make a
precise part .
The algorithm actually
determines desired variation
in the feed rate & the tool
path to provide an extremely
smooth feed rate .
3.pump
Crankshaft & intensifier pump are mainly
use in the abrasive jet machine .
The intensifier pump was the
only pump capable of reliably
creating pressures high .
Crankshaft pumps are more
efficient than intensifier pumps
because they do not require a power robbing
hydraulic system ultra high pressure &
more stroke per minute .
4.nozzle
All abrasive jet systems use the same basic
two stage nozzle . First , water passes through
a small diameter jewel orifice to form a
narrow jet .
The abrasive particles are accelerated by the
moving stream of water & they pass into a
long hollow cylindrical
ceramic mixing tube.
Generally two type of nozzle
use , right angle head &
straight head .
nozzle
5. Mixing tube
The mixing tube is where the abrasive
mixes with the high pressure water .
The mixing tube should be
replaced when tolerances
drop below acceptable levels .
For maximum accuracy ,
replace the mixing tube
more frequently .
6.Motion system
In order to make precision parts , an
abrasive
jet system must have a precision x-y table
and
motion control system .
Tables fall into three general categories .
 Floor-mounted gantry systems
 Integrated table/gantry systems
 Floor-mounted cantilever systems
 working process
High pressure water starts at the pump ,
and is delivered through special high
pressure plumbing to the nozzle .
At the nozzle , abrasive is introduced & as
the abrasive/water mixture exits , cutting is
performed .
Once the jet has exited the nozzle , the
energy is dissipated into the catch tank ,
which is usually full of water & debris
from previous cut .
schematic diagram of ajm
 ajm features
There are main features of AJM
 Obtainable tolerances
 Material to machine
 Material thickness
 Accuracy of table
 Stability of table
 Control abrasive jet
 Machine aspects
 Around curves
 Inside corner
 Feed rate
 Acceleration
 Nozzle focus
 Speed cutting
 Pump pressure
 Hardness & thickness
 Software controlling the motion
 Power at the nozzle
 Types of abrasive materials

Different types of abrasive are used in

abrasive jet machining like garnet ,
aluminum oxide , olivine , silica sand , silicon
carbide ,etc .
Virtually any material can be cut by using
abrasive jet machining method , i.e harder
materials like titanium to steel.
Abrasive particles must be hard ,high
toughness,
irregular in shape & edges should be sharp
.
 Advantages
 Extremely fast setup & programming
 No start hole required
 There is only one tool
 Low capital cost
 Less vibration
 No heat generated in work piece
 Environmentally friendly
  Disadvantages
 Low metal removal rate
 Due to stay cutting accuracy is affected
 Abrasive powder cannot be reused
 Tapper is also a problem
 Multi response optimization approach
Methods
Experiments have been conducted considering three
process parameters such as pressure; stand-off distance
and abrasive grain size each at three levels for obtaining
desired value of responses like material removal rate
(MRR) and surface roughness (SR).

To increase a MRR and to Reduce Surface Roughness the best

way recommended it, work proposes of a principal component
analysis based Taguchi method for simultaneous optimization
of correlated responses. The Method proposed Specifically
Weighted Principal Component Analysis (WPCA) Method.
 Weighted Principal Component Analysis (WPCA)

Weighted principal component analysis (WPCA)

suggested computation of composite principal
component. Values of individual principal
components multiplied by their priority weight
were added to calculate the composite principal
component denoted as Multi-response
performance index (MPI). MPI values are
optimized (maximized) using Taguchi method.
But it may happen that value of MPI for any
experiment may assume negative value.
 Continued……
This creates problem when MPI is maximized.
Also, negative values of MPI pose difficulty
during transformation of it into signal-to-noise
ratio (S/N ratio). To address this fallacy, present
study introduces the concept of combined quality
loss (CQL) which is nothing but absolute
deviation of MPI from its ideal value. The
modulus (absolute value) of deviation facilitates
computation of S/N ratio. The CQL is finally
optimized (minimized) by Taguchi method .
 Continued …..
Weighted principal component analysis (WPCA)
has been coupled with Taguchi method in the
present investigation. WPCA helps to convert
correlated responses into uncorrelated quality
indices called principal components. The results
from the confirmation runs indicate that the
determined optimal combination of machining
parameters improves the performance of
machining process.
 conclusion
The better performance , and the
applications represented above statements
confirm that
ABRASIVE JET MACHINING is continue
to expand .
The new software’s used to minimize time
and investments , there by making it
possible for more manufacturers of
precision parts to install AJM centers .
 Continued….
Industry is convinced that the large aerospace
segment will take off in near the future, together
with other segments that are currently showing
interest in AJM method. From operator
experiences the abrasive jets are capable of
anywhere from 0.5mm - 0.025mm precision.
High precision manufacturing needs can be met
by using AJM method. Newer machines are
capable of 3D machining thus making it an
important in specialty manufacturing.
Recommendation
Abrasive Jet Machining is an advanced
manufacturing future, and I recommend that a
Material Removal Rate (MRR) and Surface
Roughness (SR) are obstacles for this
manufacturing process. So to eliminate these
problems it is better use Optimization Method
that it meant Weighted principal component
analysis (WPCA) Method. Therefore, it can get
better surface finish products with high
Removal Rate and also High quality products.
Thank