Grindability of γ-TiAl intermetallic compounds during ultrasonic vibration-assisted high efficiency deep grinding process

Gamma titanium-aluminum intermetallic compounds (γ-TiAl) have an important application significance in the field of aero-engines owing to their excellent mechanical properties (e.g., high-temperature resistance and high toughness). Grinding as an important method was used to realize the high efficiency and precise machining for difficult-to-cut materials. However, the machining defects (e.g., adhesion, cracks, and even burns) were confronted on the machined surface of γ-TiAl materials under high grinding force and temperature loads. In this case, the new machining methods combined with ultrasonic vibration and high-efficiency deep grinding technology were proposed to improve the machining quality and efficiency. Comparative trials of ultrasonic vibration-assisted high-efficiency deep grinding (UVHEDG) and high-efficiency deep grinding (HEDG) were carried out to study the grinding performance, in terms of the grinding force, grinding temperature, specific grinding energy, and machining surface quality. Results show that UVHEDG possesses the lower grinding force and temperature by 38.69% and 39.05% compared with HEDG, respectively. In addition, the employment of ultrasonic vibrations contributes to maintaining the abrasive sharpness, and thus, the specific grinding energy is reduced by 23.95%. Ground surface roughness can be reduced by 19.53%, and the grinding surface quality is effectively improved due to the lubrication effect and track overlap effect under ultrasonic vibration.