A study on the influence of WEDM parameters on surface roughness, kerf width, and corrosion behavior of AZ31B Mg alloy

Abstract

Wire electric discharge machining (WEDM) is a nontraditional machining process where the material is removed by the spark erosion technique. This technique is used to machine AZ31B, a biodegradable Magnesium alloy. In the present work impact of WEDM input parameters, namely pulse on time (T<inf>on</inf>), pulse off time (T<inf>off</inf>), servo voltage (SV), and wire feed (WF) on response characteristics is studied. The response characteristics considered are kerf width (KW), surface roughness (SR), and corrosion rate (CR). L<inf>9</inf> orthogonal array by Taguchi's is employed as the design of experimentation. Taguchi's analysis implied that T<inf>ON</inf> is the most influencing input parameter on the response characteristics. At a relatively lower T<inf>ON</inf> setting (105 μs), comparatively lesser kerf width (335.894 μm), lower surface roughness (3.069 μm), and lower corrosion rate (0.95 mm/year) are exhibited by the machined specimens. From the main effects plots using signal-to-noise ratios, it is understood that the values of response characteristics increased with an increase in T<inf>ON</inf> value. It is due to the increase in discharge at the more pulse on time duration. It is also understood that a surface with relatively better surface finish exhibited better corrosion resistance. With the help of regression equations, the relation between response characteristics and input parameters is built. © 2022 The Combustion Institute. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.