Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066

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Journal of Manufacturing Processes
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/manpro
Technical paper
Effect of Titanium Carbide particle addition in the aluminium composite on EDM
process parameters
Velusamy Senthilkumar

, Bidwai Uday Omprakash

Department of Production Engineering, National Institute of Technology, Thiruchirappalli-620015, India
a r t i c l e i n f o
Article history:
Received 9 November 2009
Received in revised form
11 June 2010
Accepted 28 October 2010
Available online 27 November 2010
a b s t r a c t
Machining of hard materials such as metal matrix composites (Al/TiC) to a high degree of accuracy and
surface finish is difficult. Electrical discharge machining (EDM) is an important process for machining
difficult-to-machine materials like metal matrix composites. EDM is an effective tool in shaping such
difficult-to-machine materials. The objective of this work is to investigate the effect of current (C), Pulse
On-Time (POT) and flushing pressure (P) on Metal Removal Rate (MRR), Tool Wear Rate (TWR) during
electrical discharge machining of as-sintered Al-MMC with 5% and 2.5% TiC reinforcement. The use of
kerosene as a dielectric fluid was employed in the present investigation. A copper tool of diameter 7 mm
was used to drill the specimens. An L18 orthogonal array (OA), for the three machining parameters at
three levels each, was opted to conduct the experiments. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed
to find the validity of the experimental plan followed in the present work. An attempt was also made in
the present work to study the effect of TiC particle addition on the Electrode Wear Ratio (EWR), a new
parameter taking into consideration both MRR and TWR. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analysis
was conducted to study the recast layer evolved during the electrical discharge machining process.
2010 The Society of Manufacturing Engineers. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
1. Introduction
Aluminium alloys reinforced with SiC and TiC particles are
often used for various automotive and aerospace applications due
to their extreme hardness and temperature resistant properties.
However, the full potential of these metal matrix composites
was hindered by the high manufacturing cost mainly because
of the difficulties in machining such as turning, drilling, sawing,
etc. generally results in excessive tool wear due to the very
abrasive nature of the material [1,2]. Metal matrix composites
reinforced with hard ceramic fibers, particles can be machined
with either an electroplated diamond grinding wheel or carbide
with Poly Crystalline Diamond (PCD) cutting tools [3,4]. As a
consequence, non-conventional machining process like electro
discharge machining (EDM) [57], laser [8] and other techniques
were increasingly being applied for the machining of particle
reinforced metal matrix composites. Agreat deal of investigation is
needed to optimize the process parameters in the electro discharge
machining process.
Experimental investigation was carried out in the past to
evaluate the effect of current, pulse on time and gap voltage
on metal removal rate (MRR), tool wear rate (TWR) and radial
over cut on electrical discharge machining of an Al4Cu6Si

Corresponding author. Tel.: +91 431 250 3519; fax: +91 431 250 0133.
E-mail address: vskumar@nitt.edu (V. Senthilkumar).
alloy reinforced with silicon carbide particles [9]. Experimental
investigations were carried out to study the effect of current,
pulse on time and flushing pressure on metal removal rate,
tool wear rate and surface roughness in the as cast Aluminium
reinforced with 10% SiC particulates composites [10]. Ramulu
et al. [11] carried out experimental investigations on the effect
of surface roughness generated by the machining process on
mechanical properties of a 15 vol.% SiCp/A336 aluminum metal
matrix composite. The main objective of the above work was
to study the fatigue behavior of the machined surface. Akshay
Dvivedi et al. [12] investigated the machinability of an Al6063
SiCp metal matrix composite and obtained an optimal setting
of process parameters. The material was developed using the
melt stirsqueezequench casting route and was characterized for
density, porosity and electrical conductivity. Yan and Wang [13]
investigated the machining characteristics of the Al
2
O
3
/6061Al
composite using rotary electro-discharge machining with a tube
electrode. They concluded that the machining process of the
Al
2
O
3
/6061Al composite by EDM-drilling is feasible in comparison
to other machining processes.
In the present work, aluminum metal matrix composites
reinforced with two different percentages of Titanium carbide
particles were prepared using the powder metallurgy route. The
electrical discharge machining of AlTiC
p
was done using 7 mm
electrolytic copper and the effects of various parameters, namely,
current, pulse on time and flushing pressure on Tool Wear Rate,
Metal Removal Rate and Electrode Wear Ratio (EWR). An attempt
1526-6125/$ see front matter 2010 The Society of Manufacturing Engineers. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.jmapro.2010.10.005
V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066 61
Fig. 1. Microstructure of Al/2.5% TiC composite.
was made in the present investigation to evaluate the effect of TiC
reinforcement in the composite on the TWR, MRR and EWR. The
effect of addition of titanium carbide particles in the composite on
the recast layer thickness has also been studied.
2. Experimental and analytical procedure
The metal matrix composites used for the tests were Aluminum
composites reinforced with varying percentages of titanium
carbide particles (TiC) produced through the powder metallurgy
route. The composites consisted of pure aluminium (45 m
particle size) reinforced with 2.5% and 5% Titanium Carbide
particles in as received condition fromM/s Sigma Aldrich (fine size
of 45 m), compacted to a pressure of 300 MPa and sintered at a
temperature of 500 C for two hours in a tube furnace under argon
atmosphere. Basic characterization studies such as microstructure,
XRD pattern and hardness of sintered composites were conducted
on the sintered composites to evaluate the material characteristics.
Figs. 1 and 2 show the microstructure of as sintered composite
samples of Aluminium composites with 2.5% and 5% TiC particles
respectively. Aclose observationof the above micrographs indicate
the uniform distribution of titanium carbide particles in the
aluminium matrix in the case of Al-2.5% TiC composites compared
to Al-5% TiC which shows slight agglomeration of TiC particles in
the matrix. The XRD pattern of the sintered composites in Fig. 3(a)
and (b) show the Aluminium and TiC peaks indexed using JCPDS
file numbers 04-0787 and 65-7994 respectively. The analysis of the
above XRD patterns show the absence of any intermetallic phases
in both Al-2.5% TiC and Al-5% TiC composites. Micro hardness tests
were carried out on the composite samples provided in Table 1
show increased hardness values for the composite samples as the
percentage of titanium carbide increases. The work piece used in
this experiment was AlTiC composites of two different titanium
carbide particle reinforcements (2.5% and 5%). A die sinking
EDM machine was used for the present experimental works. The
specimens were machined by fine grinding to make both ends
parallel. The electrode materials were electrolyte copper. During
machining, commercial kerosene was circulated as the dielectric
fluid in the tank.
For the present experimental investigation, three different
machining parameters, namely, pulse current (2, 4 and 6 A), pulse
on time (300, 400 and 500 s) and flushing pressure (0.25, 0.5 and
0.75 kgf/cm
2
) were identified and their levels were fixed. For the
above experiments, the gap voltage was maintained at 45 V and
the pulse off time was kept as constant at 150 s. The various
levels for the individual parameters such as pulse current, pulse
on time and flushing pressure were selected based on previous
Fig. 2. Microstructure of Al/5% TiC composite.
Table 1
Micro hardness values of as sintered aluminium and composite samples.
Hardness values (HR
c
)
Al-5TiC% Al-2.5%
45.8 37.1
44.8 37.1
41.4 39.4
Table 2
L18 experimental plan.
Exp no. Current (A) Pulse on time (s) Pressure (kgf/cm
2
)
1 2 300 0.25
2 2 400 0.5
3 2 500 0.75
4 4 300 0.25
5 4 400 0.5
6 4 500 0.75
7 6 300 0.5
8 6 400 0.75
9 6 500 0.25
10 2 300 0.75
11 2 400 0.25
12 2 500 0.5
13 4 300 0.5
14 4 400 0.75
15 4 500 0.25
16 6 300 0.75
17 6 400 0.25
18 6 500 0.5
literature [9,10] and the size of the hole investigated in the present
work which is 7 mm in diameter. A total of 18 experiments were
planned based on the Taguchi model as provided in Table 2. Three
different responses studied were MRR (Metal Removal Rate), TWR
(Tool Wear Rate) and EWR (Electrode Wear Ratio).
Material removal rate is expressed as the ratio of the difference
of weight of the workpiece before and after the machining to the
machining time.
MRR = (w
jb
w
ja
)/t (1)
where, w
jb
and w
ja
are weights of workpiece before and after the
machining and t is the machining time.
Tool Wear Rate is expressed as the ratio of the difference of
weight of the tool before and after the machining to the machining
time:
TWR = (w
tb
w
ta
)/t (2)
62 V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066
(a) XRD pattern of Al-2.5% TiC composite. (b) XRD pattern of Al-5% TiC composite.
Fig. 3.
Table 3a
ANOVA summary table for 5% composition for MRR.
Source SS DF MSD F
Current 8003.862 2 4001.931 2.36133
POT 8022.243 2 4011.121 2.366753
FP 128.9214 2 64.4607 0.038035
error 18642.56 11 1694.778
Total 34797.59 17
where, w
tb
and w
ta
are weights of tool before and after the
machining.
Electrode wear ratio (EWR) is expressed as the ratio of MRR and
TWR:
EWR = MRR/TWR. (3)
For eachcomposition of the aluminiumcomposites, 18 experimen-
tal runs were carried out. For each trial, to calculate MRR and TWR,
the weight of the tool and workpiece before and after machining
were measured and for every trial, the machining time was also
noted down and readings were tabulated in the table.
Al-MMC with 2.5% and 5% TiC was drilled using a Copper tool
of 7 mm. Positive polarity was maintained for the workpiece
and negative polarity for the tool. Commercial grade kerosene
was used as the dielectric fluid. It was decided to select the trials
at random and complete all the three successive repetitions in
that trial. Following machining of the composite workpieces, the
work pieces were sectioned and microstructure of the material
was investigated using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) and
a recast layer thickness of the machined composites was evaluated.
3. Results and discussion
From the data obtained from the experiments, validity of the
results was analysed using the Analysis of Variance (ANOVA)
method [14]. The ANOVA results for various response variables
such as MRR and TWR are shown in Tables 3a4b. The analysis
of the above ANOVA results show that the calculated F values
obtained are significant thereby the experimental plan is valid.
3.1. Effect of TiC addition on MRR
Results show that the aluminium composites reinforced with
Titanium Carbide particles can be machined using EDM in spite
of poor electrical conductivity and high thermal resistance of
titanium carbide particles. However, the material removal rate
Table 3b
ANOVA summary table for 5% compositions for TWR.
Source SS DF MSD F
Current 1.367021 2 0.683511 3.382019
POT 1.362866 2 0.681433 3.37174
FP 2.059122 2 1.029561 5.094281
error 2.223115 11 0.202101
Total 7.012125 17
Table 4a
ANOVA summary table for 2.5% composition for MRR.
Source SS DF MSD F
Current 35770.2 2 17885.1 77.8358
POT 4999.91 2 2499.96 10.8798
FP 1730.8 2 865.399 3.7662
error 2527.58 11 229.78
Total 45028.5 17
Table 4b
ANOVA summary table for 2.5% compositions for TWR.
Source SS DF MSD F
Current 7.81054 2 3.90527 7.64483
POT 6.955887 2 3.477943 6.80831
FP 5.02142 2 2.51071 4.914885
error 5.619218 11 0.510838
Total 25.40707 17
is low when compared to machining other electrical conducting
materials [2]. The effect of titanium particle content in the
composite and various input parameters such as machining
current, pulse on time and flushing pressure on the material
removal rate and tool wear rate are shown in Fig. 4(a)(c).
Metal removal rate is found to increase with increasing values
of discharge current. Increased rate of material removal from the
work piece and the tool electrode is attributed to the higher
thermal loading as a result of higher discharge current value.
Material removal rate decreases as the percent of titaniumcarbide
particle in the composite increases due to the shielding effect of
titanium carbide particle in the composites. As reported [2], the
ceramic particles did not melt during the machining process and
removal of material in the composite occurs as a result of matrix
melting and vaporizing around the ceramic particles. The effect
of flushing pressure on the material removal has been evaluated
in the present investigation and is shown in Fig. 4(b). Increase in
flushing pressure improves the machining process in the form of
clearing the ceramic particles removed from the material thereby
V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066 63
(a) Effect of current on MRR. (b) Effect of flushing pressure on MRR.
(c) Effect of pulse on time on MRR.
Fig. 4.
(a) Effect of current on TWR. (b) Effect of flushing pressure on TWR.
(c) Effect of pulse on time on TWR.
Fig. 5.
setting the conductive path to continue the formation of ionized
bridges. However, as the flushing pressure reaches very highvalues
(0.75 kgf/cm
2
) the flow of dielectric blocks the formation of
ionized bridges and reduces the material removal rate. The effect
of pulse on time on MRR is shown in Fig. 4(c). Metal removal
rate increases with increasing pulse on time initially and after an
optimum value is reached no visible improvement in the material
removal rate has been noticed. Longer pulse duration creates
64 V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066
(a) Effect of current on Electrode Wear Ratio. (b) Effect of flushing pressure on Electrode Wear Ratio.
(c) Effect of pulse on time on Electrode Wear Ratio.
Fig. 6.
larger removal of material in the form of craters which hinders
the mechanism of creation of a conductive path between the
electrodes and results in a drop in the material removal rate when
pulse on time increases to higher value (500 s). The amount of
ceramic particles present in the crater produced by the longer
duration of pulse on time is higher in the case of Al-5% TiC
composites which exhibit lower MRR for any pulse on time values
when compared to Al-2.5% TiC composites.
3.2. Effect of TiC addition on TWR
The effect of discharge current onthe tool wear rate is evaluated
and a plot showing the trend is as shown in Fig. 5(a). Increase
in discharge current has a moderate effect on TWR up to an
optimum value and thereafter a significant rise in the wear rate
is associated with higher thermal loading. The negligible tool
wear in the initial period is due to the deposition of workpiece
material on the tool electrode which inhibits the wear of electrode.
However, as the current is further increased the tool electrode
exhibits substantial wear. When compared to composites with low
titanium carbide content (Al-2.5% TiC), composites with higher
reinforcement content (Al-5% TiC) exhibit lower tool wear rate
as the ceramic particles trapped in the conductive path require
more flushing pressure for the machining process to continue. The
effect of the flushing pressure on tool wear is shown in Fig. 5(b).
The increase in flushing pressure clears the material particles
trapped in the conductive path and facilitates the machining as
evidenced in the present investigation has been in conformity
with the works of earlier researchers [10]. Increase in flushing
pressure also reduced tool wear rate substantially in the case of Al-
2.5%TiC whencompared to Al-5%TiC suggests a careful selection of
flushing pressure level for the effective machining of composites.
Effect of pulse on time on the tool wear rate is shown in Fig. 5(c).
Increasing the duration of pulse increases the tool wear during the
Fig. 7. SEM micrograph of machined surface in Al-5% TiC showing formation of
different layers during EDM.
initial period. However, as the pulse on time reaches an optimum
value a gradual reduction in the tool wear is noticed which is the
combined effect of an increase in the flushing pressure particle
crater formation due to longer pulse duration. A sudden drop in
the tool wear rate has been noticed when machining Al-2.5% TiC
composites at very high pulse on time value.
3.3. Effect of TiC addition on Electrode Wear Ratio (EWR)
Electrode wear ratio of the composite specimens was evaluated
in the present investigation. EDM input parameters such as
current, flushing pressure and pulse on time were plotted against
electrode wear ratio (MRR/TWR) as shown in Fig. 6(a)(c). The
EWR increases with increasing values of discharge current due
to higher thermal loading. The discharge current requirement
increasing withincreasing levels of reinforcement inthe composite
materials is in good agreement with earlier reports [10]. A longer
duration of pulse increases EWR during the initial period and
V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066 65
Fig. 8. (a) Microvoids and cracks on the EDM surface of 5% TiC composites (b) Recast layer white layer on EDM machine surface 5% TiC composites.
Fig. 9. (a) Crater formation on the EDM surface on 2.5% TiC composites. (b) White recast layer in EDM for 2.5% Al/TiC.
thereafter it decreases due to formation of craters and resistance
in the conductive path due to removed ceramic particles. A higher
percentage of TiC content in the composite decreases EWR due to
high electrical resistance. The effect of flushing pressure on EWR
was evaluated as shown in Fig. 6(c). Increase in flushing pressure
increases EWR continuously in the case of Al-2.5% TiC. However,
the trend in Al-5% TiC is different in which during the initial
period due to the formation of bigger size craters EWR is slightly
reduced and when the flushing pressure is further increased EWR
is increased drastically.
3.4. Effect of TiC addition on recast layer thickness
Fig. 7 shows various surface layers produced during the electro
discharge machining of composite samples. Three different distinct
layers formed during electro discharge machining are a white or
recast layer at the top of the surface, a heat affected zone in which
the structure of the material is slightly altered and an unaffected
zone with identical microstructure of the base material. A large
number of micro cracks have been observed on the recast layer.
Cracks appearing on the recast layer are due to high tensile stress
developed due to imperfect joining of molten droplets inducing
a lot of stress gradient exceeding the ultimate tensile strength of
the composite material. The matrix material melts and recasts on
the machining surface with lots of micro-cracks and voids formed,
as shown in Figs. 8(a)9(b), due to the formation of gas bubbles.
However, ceramic particles pulled out of the matrix during the
process have not recast on the surface as evidenced from SEM
pictures of 2.5% and 5% TiC composites thereby making the recast
layer distinct with different surface integrity. The above theory
has been further strengthened by the XRD studies carried out,
the results of which have been provided in Fig. 10(a)(b), on
the machined surface of 2.5% and 5% TiC reinforced aluminium
composites indicating only Aluminium peaks and no visible
TiC peaks. It has also been found that the thickness of the
recast layer increases with increasing percentage of TiC particle
in the composite which is in good conformity with earlier
research [10].
4. Conclusions
AlTiC composites can be machined using electrodischarge ma-
chining and by selecting optimum levels for the EDM parameters,
namely, discharge current, pulse on time and flushing pressure the
effectiveness of process like metal removal rate and electrode wear
rate can be improved. A careful investigation into the structure of
the material after the machining suggests that ceramic particles
(TiC) were not melted during the process and removal of material
occurs as a result of matrix melting and ceramic particle pull out
thereafter. The above phenomenon results in the reduced metal
removal rate with the increased titanium carbide content in the
composite material. Material removal rate and tool wear rates are
66 V. Senthilkumar, B.U. Omprakash / Journal of Manufacturing Processes 13 (2011) 6066
(a) XRD pattern of the hole surface of Al-2.5% TiC composite. (b) XRD pattern of the hole surface of Al-5% TiC composite.
Fig. 10.
influenced by discharge current. Flushing pressure plays an impor-
tant role in continuing the process and improving the material re-
moval rate at higher discharge current and pulse duration levels.
Acknowledgement
This work has benefited from the use of the facilities from
the Project funded by the Department of Science and Technology,
Government of India, under Grant No. SR/FTP/ETA-69/07.
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