Optimization of Process Parameters in Abrasive Water Jet Machining of Austempered Ductile Iron (ADI)

Austempered ductile iron (ADI) is a hard-to-cut material used for a variety of purposes, including flanges in power plants, oil fields and railway sectors. This article aims to establish a correlation between the surface quality (R-a), the kerf angle (K-Ta), and the erosion rate and four critical process variables such as traverse speed (N-S), abrasive flow rate (A(FR)), water jet pressure (W-JP), and standoff distance (S-oD). All of the inferences from the experiments were made using the RSM-CCD response surface methodology and the central composite design. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed to identify which W-JP factors had the greatest impact. W-JP was shown to be the most influential parameter in the outcomes. The R-a and K-Ta both fell by 56.7 and 33% when the W-JP reached a value of 360 MPa, whereas the MRR increased by 35.46 %. In order to fine-tune the abrasive water jet machining settings of the ADI sample, the desirable analysis is taken to optimize the parameter. Surface morphology and erosion processes of AWJM are studied using a scanning electron microscope and 3D surface roughness analysis.