Improvement of electrochemical machining accuracy by using dual pole tool

Electrochemical machining (ECM) is one of the best alternatives for producing complex shapes in advanced materials used in aircraft and aerospace industries. However, the reduction of the stray material removal continues to be a major challenge for industries in addressing accuracy improvement. This study presents a method of improving machining accuracy in ECM by using a dual pole tool with a metallic bush outside the insulated coating of a cathode tool. The bush is connected with anode and so the electric field at the side gap area is substantially weakened. The modeling and simulation indicate that the dual pole tool brings down the current density at the side gap area of the machined hole and hence reduces the stray material removal there. It has been experimentally observed that the machining accuracy and the process stability are significantly improved.