Helical Electrodes for Electro-Discharge Drilling: Experimental and CFD-Based Analysis of the Influence of Internal and External Flushing Geometries on the Process Characteristics

The electro-discharge (ED) drilling of precision boreholes in difficult-to-machine materials, particularly with respect to the cost-effectiveness of the overall process, is still a challenge. Flushing is one key factor for the precise machining of boreholes, especially with high aspect ratios. Therefore, the influence of internal and external flushing geometries for six types of brass tool electrodes with a diameter of 3 mm with and without a helical groove was analyzed experimentally and numerically. Using this helical external flushing channel, drilling experiments in X170CrVMo18-3-1 (Elmax Superclean) with an aspect ratio of five revealed a material removal rate (MRR) that was increased by 112% compared with a rod electrode, increased by 28% for a single-channel tool electrode and decreased by 8% for a multi-channel tool electrode. Signal analyses complemented these findings and highlighted correlations between classified discharge event types and the experimental target parameters. Amongst others, it was verified that the arcing frequency ratio drove the electrode wear rate and the beneficial frequency ratio correlated with the MRR and the surface roughness Ra. Sophisticated 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models of the liquid phase were introduced and evaluated in great detail to demonstrate the validity and further elucidate the effect of the external flushing channel on the evacuation capability of debris and gas bubbles. The presented methods and models were found to be suitable for obtaining in-depth knowledge about the flushing conditions in the ED drilling working gap.