Investigations in to Wire Electro Discharge Machining of Ti Alloys VT20 (BT20)

Wire electric discharge machine (WEDM) is a spark erosion non-conventional machining method to cut hard and conductive material with the help of a wire electrode. Ti Alloy V20 (BT20) is a hard alloy with high hardness and wear resisting property. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of parameters on surface roughness & cutting rate for WEDM using Ti Alloy V20 (BT20) as work-piece and brass wire as electrode. Ti Alloys VT20 (BT20) are metals which contain a mixture of titanium and other chemical elements. Such alloys have very high tensile strength and toughness (even at extreme temperatures). They are light in weight, have extraordinary corrosion resistance and the ability to withstand extreme temperatures. These are used in military applications, aircraft, spacecraft, cars, trucks, cranes, bridges medical devices, consumer electronics, roller coasters and other structures that are designed to handle large amounts of stress. It is observed that cutting rate and surface roughness increases with increase in pulse on time and peak current. Cutting rate and surface roughness decreases with increase in pulse off time and servo voltage. Wire mechanical tension has no significant effect on cutting rate and surface roughness. Response Surface methodology (RSM) is used to optimize the process parameter for cutting rate and surface roughness. Response Surface Methodology is formulating a mathematical model which correlates the independent process parameters with the desired cutting rate and surface roughness. The central composite design (CCD) has been used to conduct the experiments.