Machining and wear rates in EDM of D2 steel: A comparative study of electrode designs and materials

Electrical discharge machining (EDM), especially the die-sinking variant, is a well-known slow machining process among non-conventional manufacturing processes. Different approaches are being researched to improve EDM performance characteristics especially increasing its material removal rate (MRR) and reducing the tool wear rate (TWR). This study aims to improve the EDM process performance through modifications in tool design and employing different tool materials. The performance of conventional EDM tool is compared with different tool designs while machining D2 steel. Moreover, tool designs are employed on different tool materials including copper (Cu), copper-tungsten alloy (CuW), and graphite (Gr) to investigate the combined effect of tool designs and materials on important performance indicators of EDM die-sinking. The machining time (MT), material removal rate (MRR), lateral tool wear (TWR_L), and diametric tool wear (TWR_D) are selected as the response measures. The modified tool designs reduce the machining time by 45%. Likewise, Cu and CuW remarkably improve the material removal rate by 80%. Similarly, the lateral and diametric tool wear of modified designs are less than the wear corresponding to conventional design. Microscopic analysis revealed two wear zones which are named as aggressive sparking zone and mild sparking zone. All materials (Cu, CuW, and Gr) with the modified tool designs show significantly less sparking zone compared with the conventional design. Moreover, the most appropriate combination of tool design and material is proposed to achieve better EDM performance.