A study on machining characteristics of nickel-based alloy with short electric arc milling

Short electric arc milling (SEAM) is an electrical discharge machining method characterized by low voltage and high current. This method has high machining efficiency, and the eroded material is quickly discharged from the discharge gap by a high-speed rotating tool electrode and a certain pressure of the gas-liquid mixed medium. In this paper, the effects of tool polarity, working medium, voltage, duty cycle, frequency, and flushing pressure on the performance of short electric arc milling were investigated by using the material removal rate (MRR), tool mass wear ratio (theta), and surface roughness (SR) as technical indicators. Moreover, the surface morphology, cross-section morphology, chemical composition, and micro-hardness of GH4169 after machining were also studied, and the machine mechanism was further revealed. This work lays a foundation for more efficient and high-precision short electric arc milling.