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A dual material removal mechanism for clearing of obstructed holes via electrical discharge machining

Castro-Palacios, Monica; Ahmed, Shamraze; Ahmed, Nuhaize; Murray, James W.; Speidel, Alistair; Duffin, Jason; Kell, James; Clare, Adam T.

Authors

Monica Castro-Palacios

Shamraze Ahmed

Nuhaize Ahmed

James W. Murray

ALISTAIR SPEIDEL ALISTAIR.SPEIDEL@NOTTINGHAM.AC.UK
Assistant Professor in Sustainableengineering

Jason Duffin

James Kell

ADAM CLARE adam.clare@nottingham.ac.uk
Professor of Manufacturing Engineering



Abstract

Cooling hole blockages in gas turbine blades can occur during operation, detrimentally reducing performance and resulting in premature removal from service. Here, electrical discharge machining (EDM) is used to unblock fine holes, which have been obstructed with a mixture of both conductive and non-conductive contaminants representative of post-service condition. This work demonstrates EDM is a viable process to unblock fine holes containing material which is partially non-conductive. The mechanism results from a combination of conventional EDM discharges and mechanical spalling, resulting in a dual removal process. This method allows accurate and repeatable hole clearance in a conventional EDM hole-drilling setup.

Citation

Castro-Palacios, M., Ahmed, S., Ahmed, N., Murray, J. W., Speidel, A., Duffin, J., …Clare, A. T. (2022). A dual material removal mechanism for clearing of obstructed holes via electrical discharge machining. Manufacturing Letters, 31, 10-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mfglet.2021.12.003

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Dec 9, 2021
Online Publication Date Dec 21, 2021
Publication Date 2022-01
Deposit Date May 15, 2023
Journal Manufacturing Letters
Print ISSN 2213-8463
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 31
Pages 10-14
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mfglet.2021.12.003
Keywords Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering; Mechanics of Materials
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/18528927
Publisher URL https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2213846321000869?via%3Dihub


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