Investigation on Glass Material’s Hole Characteristics Using Different Tool Geometries in Cognitive Electrochemical Discharge Machining Process

The emergence of electrochemical discharge machining (ECDM) has demonstrated as promising method for creating micro-holes in tough and brittle materials like glass. This technique employs localized Joule heating of material to facilitate its controlled removal. Nonetheless, there are still several critical issues that need to be tackled during drilling of micro-holes. These are limited machining depth (MD), pronounced hole taperness (HT), susceptibility to thermal cracks, heat-affected zone (HAZ), reduced material removal rate (MRR), poor surface finish, and compromised hole circularity. The utilization of different tool geometries provides the scope to cater these problems by altering gas film thickness and spark consistencies. The present article investigates the impact of different tool electrode’s geometry on machined glass hole’s characteristics using cognitive ECDM process that senses tool touch with the material. The different tool’s shapes like pointed, tapered, cylindrical and drill are utilized for investigation. The machining characteristics studied are MRR, MD, HT, thermal cracks, HAZ, SR, hole size, and hole circularity. Additionally, the effect of tungsten carbide (WC) and stainless steel material on MRR, MD, HT, SR, hole size, and TWR is studied.