Electrochemical deburring of Al6082 using NaCl electrolyte: An exploratory study

Often burrs are termed as perennial thorns, real productivity killers and production engineer’s headache. These burrs are the thin ridges, projections, loose metal pieces that develop during production operation like turning, milling, drilling, sheet metal operations, etc. Workman injury, short circuits, and assembly problems were reported while handling parts with burrs during machining. In hydraulic and pneumatic systems burrs and metal pieces can alter the flow conditions, which may result into catastrophic failure. In the absence of standardized procedure and adequate standards for removal of burrs of various shapes, dimensions, and properties, electrochemical deburring (ECD) method is considered as an alternate method. In particular, deburring of internal geometry is more difficult, ECD has proved to be beneficial and inexpensive. Therefore, in automation and high-efficiency processes of deburring cross holes, development of ECD is considered to be of prime importance. The present research uses Sodium chloride (NaCl) as a neutral electrolyte for the deburring Al6082 specimen. The performance is evaluated by varying input parameters such as Current applied, concentration, current density, time, etc. Machining characteristics are analyzed and reported.