Abstract

In many grinding applications, the material removal rate is constrained by the undesired thermal effects such as surface burn, tensile residual stresses, and micro-cracks on the ground parts. Thermal damage is a common productivity limitation factor for conventional grinding wheels largely employed in industry due to their convenient cost and known behavior. The development of superabrasive materials having high heat conduction coefficients allowed for higher material removal rates, pushing up the limits of productivity previously achieved with conventional wheels. This paper presents the results of a comparative investigation of maximum surface temperatures generated during the plunge grinding of 52100 steel using Al2O3 and CBN wheels. The experiments were conducted under wet as well as dry grinding conditions. The temperatures measured experimentally were compared to those determined analytically. A discussion relative to heat partition coefficients concludes this paper.

Keywords: Temperature    Heat   Aluminum oxide grinding   CBN grinding