Stochastic modeling of ceramic grinding through single grit tests

The ceramic grinding process is studied in this dissertation. The stochastic behavior of the process is analyzed through wheel topography model. A method to model the wheel topography of different grit sizes and concentrations is developed. The wheel surface is characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), and the associated Backscattered Electron (BSE) images are analyzed by utilizing spatial statistics to model the location and the exposed area of the abrasives. A three-dimensional wheel topography model is obtained by combining the distributions of abrasive location and exposed area.;A series of single grit cutting experiments is carried out to study the influence of the cutting tool geometry on the fundamental material removal mechanism by associating the micrographs of the scratched groove with the cutting force signal. A fracture criterion has been established to discriminate brittle fracture from plastic deformation. The single grit cutting force is modeled as a power function of the contact area between the cutting tool and the work material.;The three-dimensional wheel topography and the single grit force models are combined with the kinematics of the process and utilized in a simulation to predict grinding force and specific energy. The prediction is verified with the experimental results. Good agreement between the simulation and the experimental results has been achieved. The present study shows that the models can help the process engineers in optimizing the process parameters and the models can be utilized for various abrasive machining processes. Future work should focus on refining the wheel topography and single grit force models by incorporating the wheel wear and thermal effects.;The wheel topography model is combined with kinematic condition to obtain chip parameters, such as chip thickness, chip length, and number of active cutting edges. The effect of the cutting condition on the chip parameters is analyzed.