Machinability study of abrasive aqua jet parameters on hybrid metal matrix composite

Abstract

The present work involves investigation of the abrasive aqua jet (AAJ) machining of hybrid metal matrix which consists of Al 6063 reinforced with boron carbide (B4C) and zirconium silicate (ZrSiO4) in the form of particulates in the proportion of 5% B4C and 5% ZrSiO4. The Response surface method using a central composite design was adopted for conducting experiments by changing the aqua jet pressure, abrasive flow rate, and traverse rate. The results were taken with different types of abrasives of various mesh sizes in this study, which were analyzed using response surface graphs. The striation effect on the bottom-machined surfaces was also examined using the striation length and its frequency. Surface topography and morphology were analyzed on the AAJ-machined composite kerf wall cut surfaces. The machined surface exhibited the inherent characteristics of AAJ which included wear tracks, and contamination generated in the metal surface. The experimental results revealed that higher abrasive flow rate (400 g/min), lower traverse rate (30 mm/min), and higher aqua jet pressure (300 MPa), the production of a higher material removal rate, lower surface roughness and kerf taper angle.